Recruiting never stops. Neither do your questions.
And if we didn’t get to your question, don’t be discouraged! We will be addressing some on “Stars Matter,” our recruiting podcast.
Note: Submitted questions have been lightly edited for clarity and length.
I always thought that when choosing an investment bank, you should ask what makes each firm different or special. You get answers such as “We’re really big, so we have a lot of options,” or “We’re small so you get more attention” or “We charge low commissions.” However, I’m scared of any bank that says they do something different than everyone else because the reality is that they all pretty much do the same thing. How scared are you for Colorado fans when Deion Sanders says that he needs to recruit differently than everyone else because he can’t visit high schools and can’t do in-home visits, so he’s going to save the school money and recruit from his home? — Dan K.
Deion Sanders became Prime Time because he’s a showman. The way he danced into end zones and dominated on the field, the man was born to be a star. When he was hired, we knew Colorado was going to be “different.” That’s the beauty of the hire.
But being different isn’t what scares me. Being different is what you embrace.
It’s not putting in the work that scares me. It’s not embracing what it takes to be a college football coach and disguising that with misleading statements about being different.
I don’t hate Deion Sanders. I am disappointed that he isn’t embracing being a college football coach in a way that would allow him to reach his unfathomable potential. He won’t go visit kids and seems disinterested in recruiting high school classes. Because of this, I feel like… pic.twitter.com/UMRjIFESh2
— Ari Wasserman (@AriWasserman) March 28, 2024
Getting back to the showman comment, it’s very easy to lose track of what’s going on in Boulder. Sanders is engaging, entertaining, personable and funny. When people criticize him or he has something to say, the showman in him comes out and he has an answer for everything. He was very clever in saying he doesn’t travel for recruiting because he wants to save his university money. He was clever when saying people would get mad if he’s in a certain area of the country and visits only a few high schools, though that’s an issue every big-time coach faces. You want to buy what he is saying because he’s so damn charismatic.
But it’s all fluff. There’s no substance.
That’s why Sanders is disappointing me. Doing things “differently” was supposed to be him recruiting unconventionally and weaponizing his fame. He was supposed to show up at five-star prospects high schools and dazzle everyone with that big smile and unmatched swagger. He was supposed to make Colorado a factor because of his persona and he was supposed to sign really, really good recruiting classes.
Instead, he’s leaned almost solely on the transfer portal — which he has said publicly is his plan to flip the roster faster — and hasn’t been on the road for recruits … at all. He has plenty of time to go on book tours and appear on late-night television, but the man didn’t make one off-campus recruiting contact last year. Think about that. A celebrity as big as Deion didn’t go on the road to try to sign top-level high school players. What’s the point of being famous if you aren’t going to use it in all aspects of the job?
What a waste. His potential is off the charts, and he isn’t going to reach that potential because he isn’t putting in the work.
You can excuse it as “doing things differently.” I’ll categorize it as mismanagement of his qualifications.
Some may be quick to point out that Colorado was much better last year than we thought. They’ll point to the work he has done in the portal, and the fact he brought in Travis Hunter, Cormani McClain and Jordan Seaton. That’s all true.
To me, that makes it worse. Look at what Sanders has been able to accomplish without fully embracing what it takes to be a college football coach. Could you imagine if Sanders — er, Prime Time — embraced the less desirable parts of being a college football coach and got on the road and talked to teenagers? What if he lost himself in the art of recruiting and did everything in his power to sign as many elite-level high schoolers as possible? With relentless effort, could you imagine what the future of this Colorado program could look like?
But no, Sanders isn’t interested in that. He wants to win quickly, and doing so has come at the expense of loading his roster with higher-caliber athletes who’ll be on the team in three years. There is no future. There is only a now. He’ll distract us with funny comments at a podium or by pulling one five-star prospect a year at the end of the recruiting cycle, but he won’t put in the heavy lifting to build for now and the future.
As a result, it is becoming abundantly clear that his stint as Colorado’s coach is going to be short. He’s detailing a beautiful car that has been left outside for a few years so it looks nice, but he’s not working on the engine. Maybe after his sons are gone, he’s gone?
I thought Sanders was going to fall in love with being a college coach. I thought he’d approach this job with the same passion and vigor he did with his athletic career. A year ago, I wrote that Hunter’s success was proof of concept for what it would be like to be a star for Sanders at Colorado. I’ve been (rightfully) mocked for the column quite a bit.
I was fooled. Sanders isn’t in love with being a college football coach. He’s in love with his brand, accumulating wealth, controlling his own media outlets and being a good father. Those aren’t bad things, but it seems offensive to so many people that I could criticize the man when anyone who follows this sport knows there’s another gear Colorado could be hitting if Sanders busted his ass.
You can say he’s already returned Colorado’s investment in him plus more, which is true. Colorado is relevant because of him. You can also blindly buy into where things are headed in the future. And frankly, the sport is better because he’s in it. No coach has a more compelling aura than Sanders. Those are facts.
But I’m truly disappointed in how he’s gone about his job.
I can’t even fathom the potential of this Colorado program if Sanders truly loved it.
Instead, I just can’t see the man being a college football coach anywhere in four years.
I know you’ve written about primary motivators for students picking their future schools/programs, but I was wondering how much the “game day experience” matters to students. As a former (small-time) athlete, I have always dreamt of playing in front of 100,000 screaming fans. Personally, a good game day experience would be high on my list of factors. — J.V.
There’s no question that playing in front of a large crowd and a passionate fan base moves recruits. When you’re a kid playing sports in your backyard, you dream of 100,000 people hanging on your every move. That’s why so many coaches have designed their biggest fall recruiting weekends around big-time matchups. They want to showcase the stadium, atmosphere and fans.
But is it enough to sway a prospect’s decision? Probably not.
The truth is, there are a lot of electric atmospheres in this sport. That’s what makes college football so great. Those atmospheres are diverse, sure, but loud, rowdy stadiums are a mainstay at just about every big-time program. If you’re a prospect being offered by a program with a 100,000-person stadium, odds are you’re probably going to have a long list of scholarship offers from other places that also have big stadiums and massive crowds.
I look at stadiums and game day atmospheres the same way as facilities. Having facilities is a must, but they aren’t going to win at recruitment. Not having good ones could lose you one, though.
Though I admittedly still have a lot of places to see in the SEC, the best game-day environment I’ve witnessed is in Happy Valley for Penn State’s White Out. If big-time atmospheres were the deciding factor, the Nittany Lions would have an elite-level class every year.
Byron Washington? — Nicholas F.
In the past few months, I’ve written about Syracuse head coach Fran Brown and his mission to turn around his program. I’ve also written about Byron Washington of DeSoto (Texas) High, a 6-foot-8, 380-pound offensive tackle who moves incredibly well for his size. Last week, Washington — who was previously considering Texas and others — committed to the Orange. It was the intersection of two very interesting storylines.
Washington, ranked No. 955 overall in the 247Sports Composite, isn’t going to jump off the page when you’re scanning through the list of 2025 recruits. But as someone who has watched Washington duck through a doorway to get into the room, I would definitely want him on my team. He probably has to get in better shape and could use some development, but he has a massive, athletic body and a high ceiling.
Brown is outspoken about how he’s going to recruit. He’s going to chase sought-after prospects and do everything he can to improve Syracuse’s roster. Some may view that as the Orange winning more battles in the Northeast for high-end four-star prospects. But it’s also about recruitments like this — dipping into Texas and taking a swing on a high-ceiling prospect.
There is, of course, a long way to go until the early signing period. Washington’s commitment is just beginning, especially if the Longhorns keep pushing. But these are the early dividends you can expect from a coach like Brown.
(Photo: Chris Gardner / Getty Images)
