By Mike Farrell
C’mon Deion wake up. Purging a roster of a 1-11 team is fine and dandy (it’s actually not) to bring in a brand new team through the portal to go 4-8, but where’s the high school recruiting focus? You could be so damned good at it. Like legit — so damned good. Why aren’t you doing it?
When Deion Sanders was hired at Colorado I knew he’d be popular in the portal. He’s charming, he’s a legend, he’s a supposed mentor of men and all that jazz. I thought kids would line up to play for him. Heck, I thought somewhere there would be a kid who was an absolute superstar with no real reason to go there who would just want to pull up stakes and head to Boulder. A Xavier Worthy or Kool-Aid McKinstry kind of talent. That’s how big I thought Deion would be in the portal.
And Deion did well in the portal. Aside from his son Shedeur and Travis Hunter, he landed some dudes. His 2023 recruiting class didn’t close with the flash I expected as it ranked 30th overall but he did some nice stuff like steal 5-star DB Cormani McClain away from Miami and 4-star RB Dylan Edwards away from Notre Dame. I thought bigger things were coming in the high school recruiting world. I was wrong.
The 2024 class has six kids in it led by 5 star OT Jordan Seaton who . But six kids? That’s ridiculous. Deion is once again hitting the portal with 16 commits after 51 last year and that’s all fine and dandy, but where’s the high school recruiting effort.
Sources have told me it’s not a priority at Colorado under Deion. Not a priority at all. I’ve also been told that Deion didn’t do one in home visit this cycle but I can’t confirm that. But you get the point — Deion doesn’t want to focus on high school recruits and that’s his choice. I think it’s the wrong one and won’t work but what do I know? My problem with all of this is that Deion could be amazing at high school recruiting if he wanted to. He could kill it.
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Coaches like Nick Saban, Kirby Smart, and Dabo Swinney are legends in high school hallways because they have won national titles. When they arrive at a school it’s a massive deal, a celebrity appearance. While Deion doesn’t have national titles, he’s arguably even more of a rock star than any of them. He’s 56 years old and culturally relevant with teenagers. He’s a gold jacket NFL Hall of Famer and an absolute sporting icon. He’s a living legend. And he’s also smart and charming. People gravitate to him like a moth to a flame. He could be a high school football recruiting rock star. And yet he sits up in Boulder and works the phone in the portal. It’s actually sad.
Deion can do whatever he wants. And maybe his health issues keep him from the rigors of recruiting travel and in-school and in-home visits. Or maybe he just doesn’t want to stand on the sidelines of some high school football game in Florida in November. But guess what? I can almost guarantee you that Saban, Smart, Swinney, and the countless other coaches who hit the road tirelessly in November, December, and January don’t want to do it as well. But they love the feeling of winning and they know it’s viral that getting that shot of dopamine on Saturdays in the fall. It’s a must. But Deion doesn’t see it that way.
So I’ll admit I’m disappointed. As much as I think Deion can be a hypocrite and talk out of both sides of his mouth and as much as his “keeping receipts” and all the flash turns me off, I was looking forward to Coach Prime battling others in the high school recruiting space. And yet here we are.
My assumption is that Deion wants things the easy way. Like one and done in hoops, he wants instant talent to mesh and lead to success. I truly think he felt his assembled team last season was going to win 8 or 9 games and he’d compete for a playoff spot in 2024. He doesn’t want to build culture, develop players, and follow the blueprint of success that’s been around since Knute Rockne. Deion wants the fast track to stardom. And that’s all good when you’re a player with the genetics and skill that make you one of the most athletic men in the history of sports. But there are no shortcuts in college football.
So please Deion, I plead with you. Balance the portal with high school recruiting. Get out there and recruit some more high school studs like you did with McClain and now Seaton. You could be an absolutely elite high school football recruiter and the Colorado program would benefit from it. Whether you’re staying for the long haul or leaving after Shedeur heads off to the NFL, build a roster with some sustainability and a core which will reap benefits year after year. Don’t ignore the high school route — I’m telling you how amazing you could truly be.
