By Scott Salomon
Coach Prime did not mince words in his post-loss press conference when talking about all of the haters, who have a dislike or distaste toward the Colorado program.
“If you can’t see what’s coming with CU football, you’ve lost your mind,” Sanders said. “You’re just a flat-out hater if you can’t see what’s going on and what’s going to transpire… Something’s wrong with you.”
"If you can't see what's coming with CU football, you've lost your mind. You're just a flat-out hater if you can't see what's going on and what's going to transpire… Something's wrong with you."- Deion Sanders
(h/t: @sportingnews)pic.twitter.com/lB8pkzagqM
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) September 30, 2023
Deion Sanders made these comments following the 48-41 loss to the USC Trojans in Boulder Saturday afternoon.
I guess he was talking about me as well, as I have been smacking him and his now 3-2 Buffaloes every week.
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I am still not a believer. I see a team that gave up 498 yards of offense, missed tackles, could not protect the quarterback, and looked like a team in disarray in the first half. It was not until Sanders put in some quality freshmen in the second half, when the game could have really gotten out of hand, that the Buffs showed some authority on the gridiron.
The freshmen, predominantly Cormani McClain and Omarion Miller played extremely well and it was because of them, that Colorado was able to hang around USC for the entire game.
“Cormani came in and contributed tremendously,” Sanders said. “He made some plays. From the naked eye, I think he played well. I have to watch the film, but I am proud of him for stepping up to the challenge. I am proud of the kid.”
That’s it? The kid shut down Brenden Rice, son of Jerry Rice, in the second half to the point that he had very few targets after halftime.
Three of your five starting defensive backs are out with injuries and a freshman gets his first serious exposure, playing against a Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback, on national television, and that’s the best you can come up with.
If it were not for the play of McClain, USC would have scored at least one more touchdown in the second half.
“He’s (McClain) supposed to take the damn field and play,” Sanders stated emphatically. “We want him to be that dude. We have a certain expectation of what they should be accomplishing. Their yesterday was terrible, but today they established themselves. I am proud of them.”
He did speak more favorably of Miller who contributed seven receptions for 196 yards and a 65-yard catch and run for a score that shot adrenaline in the right arm of quarterback Shedeur Sanders.
“I didn’t think we were going to get that from Omarion. I hadn’t seen that yet,” Sanders admitted. “He hasn’t practiced well. We celebrated him after the game. His confidence is going to soar. I am proud of him.”
Sanders liked the way the rest of his team competed, especially in the second half when the Buffs made a game out of it.
“We played our hearts out,” Sanders said. “They were resilient when they had multiple opportunities to give up. Overall, I am really proud of not only the young men, the coaches, the fan base, the student body, and the City of Boulder, Sanders said.
“We really showed what we are made of.”
One thing that Colorado did show that was missing in the first four games was a semblance of a running game and a ground attack. The Buffs rushed for a season-high 193 yards on 45 carries and were led by Anthony Hankerson, who finished with 74 yards on 16 carries and a touchdown.
“The running game showed its face.”
As he normally does, he spoke glowingly of the play of his son Shedeur, who went 30-of-45 for 371 yards and four touchdowns, with one interception. Shedeur really started to take off in the second half when Miller came into the game.
“He’s the most exciting quarterback in college football. If we got the ball last, we would have gone down and scored,” Sanders bragged. Everyone knows that. He thinks a multitude of things. I am proud to be his father and his coach.”
Sanders is a top-notch college quarterback. That point cannot be disputed.
“We truly believe in what he can do with this offense. He is a today player that receivers from all over the country want to play with,” the elder Sanders said. “That entices the recruits to graduate early so they can get here early and learn.”
The bottom line is that two freshmen bailed Deion out today when they were down 48-21 in the second half. Prime is still learning as a coach and must develop his own recruits and not just more experienced transfer portal players.
It is one thing to land fresh, raw, talent, but it is another thing to develop it. Guys like McClain should have been ready to plug and play in game one. He did not learn anything in practice these last few weeks that made him a different player.
Deion is going to have to show me more before I become a believer in him and what he is trying to build in Boulder. Until then, people are continuing to buy the steak, but only get the sizzle.
