Deion Sanders runs the Colorado football program in his own unique style, which includes a steadfast commitment to not embarking on any recruiting trips. The Buffaloes coach revealed his tactic last year before leading the program to a solid 9–4 year showcasing the Heisman Trophy winner and one of best quarterbacks in the country. And like the saying goes: if it ain't broke, why fix it?
“That’s how I recruit,” Sanders said last month on ABC's Tamron Hall, via USA Today. “I don’t go to nobody’s school or nobody’s house. I’m not doing that. I’m too old to be going to somebody’s school, somebody’s house. All the kids that I’m recruiting, as a matter of fact, they in the [transfer] portal. They’re grown men with kids. They don’t need me to come around their crib and try to convince them to come play for me, nah.”
Yes. Those are the words of a person who won't be hitting the ol' dusty recruiting trail and enjoying continetal breakfasts in a mid-tier hotel. Which is his prerogative because the results have been speaking for themselves recently.
Sanders is, of course, different in that he's arguably college football's most famous coach. He has tons of avenues to get his messaging out and has fostered an atmosphere where players almost need to sell themselves to the program, not the other way around. Throw in the fact that he leans heavily into the transfer portal and it's reasonable to wonder why he would even consider altering his methods.
Because at the end of the day, the time he frees up by not traveling may be used in a more advantageous way. It's really tough to get real metrics on the value of doing bits with the Aflac duck and being the subject of countless A-blocks on debate television bring to Sanders and the program. It's worth arguing that it's a better use of time than giving a 16- or 17-year-old the hard sell by politely partaking in some homemade lasagna.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Deion Sanders Still Won't Leave Campus to Recruit After Breakthrough Colorado Season.
