Deion Sanders and Colorado are at the top of the College Football world after an upset of 17th-ranked TCU, a dominating win against rival Nebraska, and a comeback overtime victory over Colorado State. Tevision ratings are high for Colorado games and media attention is flooding in. Coach Prime is doing interviews on every outlet you can think of such as 60 Minutes, First Take, and Undisputed. Recruits are scheduling times to come to future games to see the action up close, joining the dozens of celebrities that already are in attendance. This is the Deion Sanders experience.

However, an unpleasant fixture of the Deion Sanders experience is the speculation spurred from media circles about the next stop on his coaching journey. Sports media often has the habit of starting fires and then fanning the flames before extinguishing them. The media will craft a narrative that might not even be plausible, discuss it so many times it becomes a real discourse in the sports world, then report that it is or isn't a possibility depending on the circumstances. The “Will Deion Sanders leave Colorado” coaching chatter is a perfect example of this.

Many acknowledge Sanders's successful tenure at Jackson State but only regard the HBCU as a place where he worked. Many college football experts and pundits don't even know that Jackson State is, like Colorado, also a Division I HBCU although it's in the FCS. Yet, Colorado fans and those enamored with “The Deion Sanders Experience” should take note of his Jackson State tenure to prepare themselves for what's to come. The circumstances were slightly different and, admittedly, these conversations are happening way quicker for him at Colorado than when he was at Jackson State. However, everything that's occurring now happened in his tenure at Jackson State.

Talk Of Deion Sanders Departing Jackson State Starts To Gain Traction

As the 2022 football season neared, there was chatter about Sanders leaving Jackson State to coach at an FBS school. The rumor mill had Sanders tied to several possible job openings such as at Auburn, Georgia Tech, Nebraska, and, eventually, Colorado. Jackson State fans, as well as HBCU alumni around the nation, were upset at the rumors about his possible exit. HBCU football fans want their brand of football to be seen as just as significant as the FBS. Notable players such as Shannon Sharpe, Jerry Rice, Walter Payton, Steve McNair, and others validate the feeling that HBCU football has a stake in the conversation of best conferences in the nation.

Still, the talks about Deion Sanders' eventual departure persisted. It went as far as him being asked if he'd field offers from FBS programs in his October 2022 “60 Minutes” interview. He debuted a talking point that he eventually carried throughout the rest of the season.

“What happens when a Power Five school says, ‘Give me a number. We'll make it work,” 60 Minutes correspondent Jon Wertheim asked in the 2022 feature.

Sanders quickly replied, “I'm gonna have to entertain it. Straight up…or I'd be a fool not to.”

Sanders leaving Jackson State was his professional right. No HBCU alumni were upset with his departure, just how he eventually left. But, fans were upset with the persistent question of if and when he'd leave. Even the triumphant moment of Jackson State hosting ESPN's College Gameday in advance of Jackson State's rivalry matchup against Southern University in the Boombox Classic featured discussions and questions about his coaching future.

College Gameday host Rece Davis during the Jackson State appearance even went as far as to ask him how he'd handle inquiries from teams that wanted him to leave and lead their program.

He responded, “First, I gotta stay focused and I gotta maximize these moments and continue to dominate our moments and when we cross that hurdle we'll cross that hurdle. I'll be a fool and a liar to tell you that I won't entertain those things because I am. But, I have made no plans to move. I have made no plans to go anywhere. I've made plans to dominate today.”

Colorado becomes first Power 5 team to officially offer Sanders a coaching opportunity 

The conversation still didn't stop, as rumors continued to circulate about Sander's next coaching stop. Colorado emerged as a serious contender with reports that he was offered the job to take over the 1-10 Buffaloes started to gain traction. Then, on December 2nd, Pete Thamel made the announcement: Deion Sanders was preparing to leave Jackson State to coach at Colorado and was already informing coaching staff and transfer portal players that his departure was imminent.

Colorado Fans Should Learn From Sanders's Jackson State Tenure

Colorado football fans should inform themselves of the key moments of the 2022 season at Jackson State to save themselves from hurt and disappointment. Already, Sanders and the Buffaloes 3-0 start to the season has media members such as Pete Thamel wondering if Alabama would make an aggressive push for Sanders to be hired upon Nick Saban's retirement. Skip Bayless on his newly constructed Undisputed program has had several topics about Sanders leaving to coach in the NFL, possibly taking over the Dallas Cowboys if Mike McCarthy doesn't show that he's up to the task.

Yet Colorado faithful are already allowing the conversations to ruin what has been a season of redemption and hope as the team prepares to face off against Oregon in their first Pac-12 conference game of the year.

“Notice how many outsiders from other programs want Coach Prime to leave Colorado for another job, whether it be in college or the NFL? They see what's happening in Boulder, what he's building, how players around the country are responding to him – and they're terrified,” Colorado Buffaloes Twitter fan account @GoBuffs3 tweeted.

Writer and philosopher George Santayana once said, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” Colorado Buffaloes fans should learn from “The Deion Sanders Experience” at Jackson State and use the knowledge of the past to prevent themselves from repeating the disappointment and sorrow of Jackson State alumni and HBCU fans around the nation.