‘I CAME TO JACKSON TO WIN’
Deion Sanders talks Jackson State, meeting with pastors, drug dealers
In his new book, “Elevate and Dominate-21 Ways to Win On and Off the Field,” Deion Sanders revealed that toward the end of his third and final season as coach of Jackson State football, he had contact with other schools as well as Colorado.
Jackson told Don Yaeger, author of the book released April 12, he had not made a decision whether to remain in Jackson or accept another offer, but while having lunch one day with linebackers coach Andre Hart, he heard a whisper.
“Colorado.”
Sanders said in the book that he called Rick George, the Colorado athletic director. Yaeger wrote that George took the call thinking it was going to be another round of Sanders saying, “I’m not coming.”
“But I just told him one thing,” Sanders said. “I’m coming.”
While Sanders was mostly quiet about the courtship from and negotiations with other schools during the period late in the Tigers’ 2022 season, he elaborated on that event and many others in “Elevate and Dominate.” Here are a few Sanders revealed publicly for the first time.
Sanders met with pastors and drug dealers while at JSU
Sanders said that when he took the job at JSU, he met with the local pastors one day, then gang leaders, drug dealers and hood heroes the next day.
“I knew that I needed those pastors to help us pray through storms and trials and tribulations,” Sanders said. “And they were excellent sounding boards for our kids. When you go to the street, that probably seems like a different universe. It’s actually the same darn thing, just a different ministry. Their role is just as important. One kid looks up to the pastor. Another kid looks up to the hood hero, the one who runs the neighborhood and regulates things.”
Why Deion Sanders chose Colorado over other offers
Sanders, who went 27-6 and won two Southwestern Athletic Conference championships at Jackson State, said in the book that he wasn’t looking for a new job. He said he was focused on turning Jackson State into a powerhouse but once major colleges started showing interest in him, he told his assistants how things would unfold.
“‘Look guys, this is what is going to happen,’ “Sanders said. “‘At the last minute, two other schools are going to come to us and will have outrageous financial numbers.’ That is exactly what happened. Two schools came out of nowhere at the last minute and offered us a ton of money, significantly more. But I had already made up my mind with Colorado, and God put me on the right path.”
Sanders said he chose Colorado because God wanted him on a different assignment.
“He wanted me to unify people in a place with a Black school population of something like three percent,” Sanders said. “He (God) wants me to change the game in a different way.”
Why Deion Sanders remained at Jackson State for 2022 bowl game
Sanders said that after telling the players he was leaving for Colorado, he decided to stay with the team through the Celebration Bowl.
“These were the young men and women who had made it possible for me to soar,” Sanders said. “It would not have felt right any other way. Let’s get this straight. I did not come to Jackson to leave. I came to Jackson to win. On the path of winning, options arose, and I had to weigh them.”
Deion Sanders believes he accomplished his goals at Jackson State
Sanders surprised many in 2020 when he agreed to take the job at Jackson State, a once-legendary program that had been through four coaches and four athletic directors in the eight previous seasons. He said, he was very comfortable with his life in Dallas as a high school coach.
“I went from the peace and serenity
How comfortable does Blake Shapen look?
Lebby’s hiring came shortly after quarterback Will Rogers entered the transfer portal. While Chris Parson is returning for his sophomore campaign, finding a starting quarterback was an immediate priority.
He landed former Baylor quarterback Blake Shapen to fill the void. After adding the transfer, Lebby made it apparent that he’s felt for a while Shapen was right for his system.
Is Lebby correct in that assessment? Saturday likely won’t provide a definitive answer as Shapen, along with most of the offensive players around him, hasn’t had enough time to develop under a new coach and style.
However, the spring game will show how far MSU has come in a short amount of time or how much work is left to do when August arrives.
Who has emerged in Mississippi State’s secondary?
Mississippi State, like most teams going through a coaching change, had to retool its roster via the transfer portal. The offensive line, for example, will look much different, but the Bulldogs brought in a variety of talent or proven players from the power conference level to fill holes.
However, MSU left some questions in its secondary.
Top corner Decamerion Richardson declared for the NFL Draft as did safeties Marcus Banks and Shawn Preston Jr.
Safety Corey Ellington returns as the lone proven upperclassman in the group. Corner Brice Pollock and safety Isaac Smith are also back after showing promise last year, but they’re only in their second seasons.
The secondary is filled with inexperience and uncertainty. Saturday could provide some answers.
Can Jeff Lebby continue to build excitement?
Oftentimes, it’s hard to find things of value in a spring game. Last season, Rogers was connecting with receiver Zavion Thomas on deep passes to suggest Mississippi
State’s offense under Kevin Barbay would be explosive. Instead, MSU averaged 181.8 passing yards per game.
Though it didn’t pan out, the big plays in the spring game built some energy around the program and carried momentum into a successful summer of recruiting.
Mississippi State’s spring game comes as part of Super Bulldog Weekend. MSU baseball will be hosting an important series against Auburn, with Saturday’s first pitch coming after the spring game.
Last year, MSU baseball saw more than 16,000 fans come to Dudy Noble Field for the Saturday of Super Bulldog Weekend. It’s a weekend where Lebby has a chance to impress fans and bring energy toward the football program after a five-win season.