What makes Colorado football head coach Deion Sanders such an effective recruiter? Part of it is his ability to spin a negative into a positive.

Sanders was asked on Wednesday how recruits were reacting to his team's recent slump. According to the coach, those players aren't looking backwards. “They’re not thinking about what transpired. They’re thinking about them being the missing piece of the puzzle to help this transpire,” Sanders replied confidently, courtesy of On3's Barkley Truax.

Recruiting certainly seemed like an easier task earlier in the season for Colorado football. Despite unprecedented coverage and hype surrounding Sanders, the first-year coach hit the ground running in Boulder.

Colorado football's Shedeur Sanders and Deion Sanders looking upset and frustrated

The Buffaloes knocked off #17 TCU in the their first game of the season, immediately vaulting into the AP Top 25. And that was just the beginning. Colorado, led by Sanders' quarterback son Shedeur Sanders, ripped off two more wins behind a high-powered offense that scored 124 points in three games.

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But back-to-back losses to Pac-12 rivals Oregon and USC knocked Colorado out of the top 25. This stretch of the season seemed to take the wind out of Colorado football's sails. A bounceback win over Arizona State gave way to a four-game losing streak, which Colorado will try to break on Friday against Washington State.

For Sanders, his confidence in himself extends to his recruiting style. Namely, in selling himself, as opposed to ragging on other programs.

“The No. 1 thing is that I don’t talk about any other coaches or teams or staff, I don’t believe in that. I’m not going to put you down so I can stand up. I’ve never been that type of player or person in my life.”

Sanders' optimism and focus on the wins he knows will come again are what he is selling to recruits. It's all eyes ahead for Colorado football.