Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders has long embraced the underdog spirit, and he made clear this week that those stories define his program.
“I was always him,” Sanders said when asked why he connects so deeply with overlooked players. “That dude. And most of those guys that I attracted was Rudy’s, and I always looked out for him. They were always my homies whether it was baseball, football, basketball, business or whatever have it.”
Sanders stressed that intangibles outweigh recruiting stars. “I love the guy or the woman who’s not selected, who’s not poised, who articulation may not be correct, who may not have the right outfit in her closet or shoes, but wants it, has integrity, has a heart, has a relationship with the Lord. I love and I will invest in an underdog every day that ends with a Y.”
I Am! Not I’m gonna, Not I might, Not I’m thinking about, Naw I AM! #CoachPrime
— COACH PRIME (@DeionSanders) September 9, 2025
For Sanders, those players embody what it means to be part of his team. “I’m looking more at can they play here. Do they fit who we are? Not do they come with a four and five and a star or whatever have it,” he said.
As Colorado prepares for Houston, Sanders continues to lean into that mindset: that overlooked, hungry players are the very core of his success.
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