Nick Saban praises Deion Sanders for incredible impact Coach Prime had on SWAC
By Andrew Olson
Published:
Nick Saban had high praise for one of his commercial colleagues during Saturday’s edition of College GameDay live from College Station.
When the show highlighted the HBCU slate for the Labor Day Weekend, Saban spoke up to recognize Deion Sanders for bringing attention to HBCU football during his tenure at Jackson State.
“The HBCU to me, is a conference that gets overlooked a little bit,” Saban said. “I think they play some really good football. There’s a lot of big games.
“No one realizes the impact that Deion Sanders had on the SWAC. They got a huge TV contract which has now enabled them to upgrade the quality of their programs, as well as provide better opportunities for their players to develop as people, as students…and have better careers as football players. So, South Carolina State-Florida A&M, those kinds of games are great games to watch with a lot of great players.”
“No one realizes the impact that Deion Sanders had on the SWAC… They got a huge TV contract, which has now enabled them to upgrade the quality of their programs, as well as provide better opportunities for their players to develop as people, as students….” – Nick Saban pic.twitter.com/kqKlRzs6Z7
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) August 31, 2024
Though Sanders was mentioned for Power 4 jobs, such as at alma mater Florida State in late 2019, he did not get his first college head coaching opportunity until Jackson State hired him in 2020.
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Sanders put Jackson State in the national spotlight. After a 4-3 showing in 2020 season shortened due to COVID, Jackson State went 11-2 in 2021 and 12-1 in 2022. College GameDay originated from Jackson State for the program’s game against Southern on Oct. 29, 2022.
Sanders’ Jackson State success led to him being hired for the Colorado job in 2023. The Buffaloes had a rough 4-8 showing in Year 1 under Coach Prime, but are off to a 1-0 start in 2024 with a victory over North Dakota State.
Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.
