Why college football fans should want more Deion Sanders

Admittedly, the welcome to the Big 12 I offered Colorado in July was a tepid one. When news broke that the CU Regents had approved a shift here from the Pac-12, I wrote that it was about as good as the Big 12 was likely to do and that the Buffs — my Buffs, I like to call them after matriculating there for two semesters half a century ago — were “not going to replace Oklahoma or Texas in any fashion. ” Allow me to revise that with five words I never dreamed I would type, and I will say them on behalf of the Big 12: Thank god for Deion Sanders.

Although Colorado made a brief appearance at the pinnacle of college football, winning a national title in 1990, the Buffs quickly retreated to football obscurity where they have spent most of the 50 years since my days at Libby Hall. I did write in July that “maybe Sanders has some tricks up his sleeve,’’ but that was dismissive and unfair. Sanders has a legitimate staff, he has NFL prospects and Colorado has become America’s college team to watch, even when it‘s playing in-state rival Colorado State after midnight.

That game drew more viewers nationally than Texas-Alabama the previous Saturday. Turn on the ESPN and Fox pregame shows Saturday, and they’re both in Boulder. Turn on CBS’ 60 Minutes Sunday, and there’s Jon Wertheim grinding hard to get straight answers from Deion, who‘s clearly having fun at his expense.

And that’s where I’ve been wrong and so many critics still get it wrong with a man who wears shades and calls himself Coach Prime and assures us that God called him to Jackson State, then dialed him again to move him to Colorado. We take Sanders seriously when we shouldn’t. And we don’t take him seriously when we (or TCU or Nebraska or especially Colorado State coach Jay Norvell) really should.

It’s an easy mistake. Sanders has been bursting with bluster since the late ‘80s when he exploded on the scene as a magical cornerback-return man for Florida State. You want to see someone who has made an impact on football? More than 30 years later, how many college and NFL end-zone dances are patterned on those that Deion created as a Seminole or an Atlanta Falcon? We marveled at Sanders as a player but we shuddered at some of the things he said about himself.

Muhammad Ali never sounded as self-absorbed as Prime Time in his prime. Even now, on 60 Minutes, Sanders says, “My kids that play for me, they didn’t choose a university. They chose me.

” Other coaches may feel the same or know it’s true, but they refrain from saying it. Sanders never really shies away from anything unless he’s gotten himself in trouble. My days as a Cowboys beat writer barely preceded Deion’s arrival here although I covered some of his games as a columnist.

My only run-in, if that’s the right term, came in 2009 when Sanders was “mentoring” college athletes while, it appeared, also recruiting them for his agent, Eugene Parker. All this while working for the NFL Network. It’s a relationship that got Dez Bryant suspended by the NCAA at Oklahoma State before coming to Dallas.

When I called Sanders on it, he declared that anything he had to say on the matter would be revealed on the NFL Network. Then he added, “Treat me with class, Tim. The same way I treat you.

’’ Until that moment, I didn’t realize he treated me any way at all. Regardless, a little bit of Deion becomes way too much if you’re not careful. But it’s a show.

And during the 60 Minutes interview, after trying to convince Wertheim that he scares people, that he’s so clean he makes other people check themselves, Sanders burst out laughing and said, “Now that was some good game. ’’ We should listen to him less and watch him more. His son, quarterback Shedeur Sanders, is a fabulous college talent who may run into trouble the next two weeks against Oregon and USC, but that doesn’t mean he won’t be worth watching.

Colorado is the hottest ticket around, and even if the Buffs’ stadium is half the size of those in Austin and College Station, Sanders is likely to take that school as close to the top as it’s capable of getting the next few seasons. Even now, if you look at next year’s 16-team Big 12, Colorado is the second-highest ranked team at No. 19.

You think the No. 11 Utah Utes are going to be the featured attraction at media day here next summer, or you think maybe it’s going to be Coach Prime and the Buffs? With Texas flying high at No. 3 in its final Big 12 season, the Longhorns may deliver the farewell their fans have been waiting for.

But examine the teams that will remain in the Big 12, those that recently played in CFP games or New Year’s Day bowls: Oklahoma State just got whacked by South Alabama, Baylor fell to Texas State, Houston stumbled against Rice, Cincinnati lost to Miami (Ohio) and, of course, TCU’s encore to a national title game appearance was a home loss to the Buffaloes. In the now-viral locker room talk from that TCU victory, Sanders tells his players, “We not comin’,” before they shout back “We here. ” They’re not quite here yet when it comes to the Big 12.

But the Buffs and Coach Prime can’t get here soon enough. Now play that theme music. Twitter/X: @TimCowlishaw .