Deion Sanders will shake up the recruiting world at Colorado

When Bill McCartney took over Colorado’s football program 40 years ago, the legendary coach knew one thing to be true: To compete with the big boys of college football — at that time Nebraska and Oklahoma — you needed to recruit like them.

McCartney’s gamble paid off, with the Buffs winning 58 games between 1989 and 1994, including a national championship in 1990. That was long before the era of recruiting rankings, but what was true then is equally true now: It’s about the Jimmies and Joes.

Four decades after McCartney’s big bet, the Buffaloes’ administration is pushing all of its chips to the center of the table with the hiring of Jackson State head coach and NFL Hall of Famer Deion Sanders. After trying the traditional coaching hires: Group of Five head coach to Power Five (Mike MacIntyre); Power five assistant (Mel Tucker); and former NFL coach (Karl Dorrell), athletic director Rick George is taking a big swing by bringing Coach Prime to Colorado.

What Sanders lacks in head coaching experience at a high level, he matches with recruiting chops. And for CU to ever be relevant again on the national scale it once was, this move is exactly the one they had to make.

“He knows how to recruit, he relates very well to kids and many parents grew up watching Deion,” On3 Director of Recruiting Chad Simmons said. “We know he is going to sign talent. Now a lot of eyes will be in him and his staff as coaches on the Power 5 level. This is a great move for college football and it creates new excitement at Colorado.”

Sanders has appeal to recruits, coaches and parents

At this time last year, five-star athlete Travis Hunter was Florida State-bound. Or at least that’s what everyone thought. The No. 2 overall prospect in the On3 Consensus shocked everyone on the first day of the Early Signing Period by flipping from the Seminoles to none other than Jackson State and Coach Prime. The Tigers also landed four-star wide receiver Kevin Coleman out of St. Louis, giving the FCS program two major recruiting wins.

And Sanders continued his tear in the transfer portal, where he amassed a number of former FBS and Power Five players on a roster that led Jackson State to a 12-0 regular season. Now, with the resources of a Pac-12 program with dedicated NIL efforts at his disposal, it’s almost impossible to imagine a ceiling for what Sanders is capable of.

“His energy puts him in a different stratosphere and the immediate impact he had at Jackson State quickly put recruits and coaches on notice,” said On3 national recruiting analyst Sam Spiegelman. “It won’t be the least bit surprising to see Colorado become a part of the national recruiting conversation in college football as a result of this hire.”

Expect the unexpected during Early Signing Period

To that end, we could be in for an all-time signing day when December 21 rolls around. Sanders has reportedly already been building a coaching staff and telling recruits of his plan to take the job. That includes five-star wide receiver Brandon Inniss, who told 247Sports Andrew Ivins that he is considering waiting to sign until February and has been in contact with Sanders.

The connections he has not only in the state of Florida as an FSU legend — but also in Texas where he started the Prime Prep Academy and throughout the southeast after his tenure at Jackson State — will make him a recruiting force to be reckoned with. Much like was the case with Hunter last year, if your school has an elite recruit, you can expect Coach Prime and the Colorado Buffaloes will be in touch with them. The brand of Coach Prime knows no borders.

“I’d expect him to go after any and every elite recruit he can,” one source told On3. “And that’s not just in high school recruiting. The transfer portal just got a whole lot more interesting.”

The fireworks are just beginning.