College Football

Colorado is at its best when things are 'personal,' says Deion Sanders

Published Sep. 29, 2023 7:03 p.m. ET

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Deion Sanders and the Colorado Buffaloes are the talk of the college football world — and all eyes will be on the Buffaloes this weekend as they host No. 8 USC on "Big Noon Kickoff" this Saturday (12 p.m. ET on FOX and the FOX Sports app).

Sanders stopped by the set of "Undisputed" in Boulder on Friday to share what makes the Buffaloes tick.

"Once we win our personal matchup, then we can think about it collectively," Sanders said, "but you got a responsibility to win your personal matchup — whoever that is. We play better when we make it personal for some type of reason, so they got to figure out how to make some things personal in life, and it has to be a personal battle. These guys gotta learn to take this stuff personal because time is of the essence, man. 

"We probably gonna have 15 million people watching this game tomorrow. Just one or two plays could secure your family for the rest of their darn life. Just a moment so you got to take advantage of that moment cause you never know when it's gone come."

Sanders is undoubtedly a polarizing figure in the college football world, and he went on to say that he believes anyone speaking about his reputation or coaching résumé is only hurting their own brand.

"What bothers me is [that] they can't help but expose themselves," Sanders told the "Undisputed" crew. "I got love for everybody. I don't talk about nobody even when some of the detractors say, ‘He's a big mouth.' I promote my team, I promote my young men, I promote the coaches in our facilities and our system and everything that encompasses. 

"I never spoke negative about anyone in my life. I don't believe in that. I don't condone that."

"We play better when we make it personal" — Deion Sanders on Colorado

This is Sanders' first season at the helm in Colorado after going 26-6 at Jackson State from 2020-22. The Buffaloes' roster underwent a severe transformation with the bulk of the current roster devised of transfers, including the team's star quarterback Shedeur Sanders, his son.

Colorado began its season with a 45-42 shootout victory at TCU, which made the College Football Playoff Championship last season. It followed up the road win with a convincing home victory over Nebraska and an overtime victory over in-state rival Colorado State, but the Buffaloes lost two-way superstar Travis Hunter to an injury during that game.

They then suffered their first loss at the hands of the Oregon Ducks, which handed them a blowout 42-6 loss in Eugene last week. Now, undefeated USC, which has 2022 Heisman quarterback Caleb Williams, comes to town.

Regardless of how the highly anticipated Pac-12 matchup shakes out, Sanders sees the Buffaloes' transformation as bigger than football.

"I look around and say, 'I'm thankful,'" Sanders added. "Look at the ethnicity, and look at the unity. Look at the love. Look at the compassion. Look at the care. It's not White, Black, Hispanic, Asian, it's just, ‘We see you,’ and that's what God wanted us to do, to unify one another. 

"We ain't trippin' about nothing. We just want to see some good football, and that's what we want to provide for you."

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