Deion Sanders Accused of Making “Excuses” After Revealing His Unorthodox “No Visit” Recruiting Style

Many things make Deion Sanders Coach Prime. His signature style is what separates him from the crowd. However, not all parts of his ‘style’ are well appreciated by people. One classically Deion Sanders specialty since coming to Colorado is recruiting on the road. Call it an enigmatic technique to lure more prospects in or his way of saving CU some money. The idea sits well with some. The problem is with the ones with whom Sanders’ way of recruiting does not sit well, like ON3’s Andy Staples. Staples seems confused about Deion Sanders not hitting the road for recruiting.

“It seems like he’s got a couple different reasons, and they don’t really match up, which suggests to me that maybe he’s just making excuses here,” Staples said during his interview with Philip Dukes. Many coaches not only bring recruits to campus but travel to their high schools or homes to recruit them. Jim Harbaugh, Michigan’s former head coach, for instance, made 145 off-campus contacts with recruits or their families, whereas Texas’s Steve Sarkisian made 128 visits. Addressing this, Deion Sanders had a unique explanation. “I’m a businessman as well, so I try to save our university money every darn chance I get,” Sanders confessed.

Being an entrepreneur and saving money was a juxtaposition that didn’t sit well with Staples as he asked for his guests’ take on it. It was something that even Dukes was confused about. “What I can say is that don’t line up with the Deion Sanders mentality of what we the perception of who we think Deion is,” Dukes confessed in his interview. After a lot of back and forth, Dukes seemed to arrive at a reason behind Prime’s actions. “I want to make sure that the school knows that I’m serious about us saving money so I’m not going to do that,” Duke said, iterating Sanders’s mindset per him.

Well, Deion Sanders’ image has always been one coach stacking up gold box chains, pairing them with heavy sneakers. Hence, Prime saving up some money for the organization through his ‘non-traditional’ approach seems contradictory and off-putting to many, like Staples and Dukes, especially when he gets a $200,000 allowance for it.

Deion Sanders’ travel budget and why he doesn’t use it

CU confirmed to USA Sports that Deion Sanders and Co. have not used up a single penny from their $200,000 traveling budget that they get from their contract, nor have they used the private air travel service for recruiting. And yet Sanders’s the ‘Transfer portal king’. The reason behind this is his strategy of relying highly on transfer portal players. The strategy seems to be working wonders for Colorado since the Buffs were ranked the No. 1 class of recruits in the Nation in the previous season.

READ ALSO: “No Shot Kalen Deboer Would Have Done It”: Deion Sanders’ Revolutionary Impact on College Football Hailed

Lastly, another reason for Deion Sanders adopting a new-school approach to recruiting was simple: because he was Coach Prime. “I can’t do things other coaches can do. You know why? I’m Coach Prime. And I didn’t stutter when I said it,” Sanders said with an unapologetic smirk. What do you think of Prime’s ‘unorthodox’ recruiting style? Drop your opinions in the comments.

READ MORE: “Will Come Back to You”: Pilar Sanders Takes a Leaf Out of Coach Prime’s Playbook to Preach About Karmic Justice