Oller's Second Thoughts: Is Colorado coach Deion Sanders acting or just being Prime self?
Most college coaches are actors, which is different from being fakes. Actors take on a temporary role to deliver a message. Fakes hope to fool you into thinking they always are the character they portray.
But it’s a fine line, which makes it challenging to differentiate between the two. I’ve met coaches I thought were actors who turned out to be fakes. I’ve met coaches I thought were fakes who with a wink “turned off” after leaving the media stage.
Which one is Colorado coach Deion Sanders? That’s a toughie. Prime Time likes to pump the volume so loud you don’t always hear what he’s saying. But behind closed doors he can be quite reflective. I remember interviewing Sanders when he played for the Cincinnati Reds, as he sat reading his Bible in a quiet corner of the clubhouse.
I want to say Sanders is simply acting in his role as the Buffaloes coach, putting people on full blast because he thinks he has to. He needed to change the culture in Boulder, needed to get players to believe they were capable of doing the impossible, and a quiet approach was not going to get it done. It makes sense he wants to create a polarizing us-against-the-world attitude, but some of his comments come off more like “Deion against the world.”
Case in point: In his postgame remarks following Saturday’s impressive win against 2022 national runner-up TCU, Sanders took on the media for “not believing.” It wasn’t entirely clear if the alleged lack of belief was aimed at the Buffs or their Black coach.
“We’re going to continuously be questioned, because we do things that have never been done, and that makes people uncomfortable,” Sanders said. “When you see a confident Black man sitting up there talking his talk, walking his walk, coaching 75% African-Americans in the locker room, that’s kind of threatening. Oh, they don’t like that.”
'Do you believe now?' Deion Sanders calls out doubters after Colorado stuns No. 16 TCU
A couple of things: Sanders isn’t wrong about some people being bothered by a Black coach backing up his boasting with results. Racism is a real problem. But “never been done?” Come on, Coach Prime, it’s not like you’re the first Black coach to have success at a Power Five program. Plus, it was one game. Do a little research. Tyrone Willingham won the 2000 Rose Bowl at Stanford, then in 2002 became the only first-year coach in Notre Dame history to win 10 games.
I don’t mind most of Sanders’ bravado. Again, he is trying to create a confident mindset within the program. Aim for the stars and hope to hit the moon. I could do without him calling a female reporter “sweetheart” and “baby,” as he did Saturday, but that may be part of taking the act too far.
But be cautioned, Prime, because the act gets old unless you win big. You’re not the only one keeping receipts.
How Kyle McCord compared to other OSU quarterbacks
Ohio State quarterback Kyle McCord was up-and-down Saturday starting his first season opener, but how up and how down? Our Joey Kaufman, who covers the Buckeyes 24/7, did some digging and compared the junior’s numbers against the stats of other OSU quarterbacks in their first season-opening starts.
McCord: 20-33 (61%), 239 yards, one interception, 115.4 rating.
C.J. Stroud (Minnesota): 13-23 (59%), 294 yards, four touchdowns, one interception, 222.3 rating.
Justin Fields (Florida Atlantic): 18-25 (72%), 234 yards, four touchdowns, 203.4 rating.
Dwayne Haskins (Oregon State): 22-30 (73%), 313 yards, five touchdowns, one interception, 209.3 rating.
McCord’s yardage measures up OK, but his lack of touchdown passes and rating are the glaring differences. Keep an eye on his performance in the red zone, which is where QBs earn their stripes.
Listening in
“This is a total failure on a coaching standpoint and a player standpoint that we obviously have to address and have to own.” – LSU coach Brian Kelly, Sunday after the Tigers lost 45-24 to Florida State.
Off-topic
If you have been paying attention, it is no surprise I enjoy the occasional bourbon, served neat when drinking the good stuff, with one large ice cube for the regular variety. It’s all good, but the best bourbon is not a brand but a location. Nothing beats whiskey on the golf course. My rule: one sip after every par, which during most rounds means I barely get to touch the stuff. But the rarity makes it taste that much better.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Deion Sanders cuts on doubting media after Colorado win over TCU
