The College football season may still be six months away, but the work done during the offseason plays a crucial role in shaping a team’s success. The most important factor? Recruiting. Programs like Alabama, Georgia, and USC have built their dominance by consistently excelling in this area. Deion Sanders has already made Colorado relevant, but to elevate the program to a truly competitive level, he must thrive in recruiting.
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While landing Travis Hunter was a major win, the landscape has evolved, and sustained success depends on bringing in top talent year after year. Recruiting will ultimately define Sanders’ season, and his approach has already come under scrutiny. Now, the pressure is on to prove he can build a roster capable of competing with college football’s elite.
So what does Coach Prime have to say about his recruiting? Well, he thinks it was “wonderful.”
“We had a great class. We did some wonderful things. I rely heavily on portal and not high school. I think most we ever took from high school I think was 14 kids. You got to be careful with these young ones because it’s a little different nowadays. We have a wonderful class. We improved the roster tremendously,” he said on ‘Reach the People Media.’
Deion asserted that the modern landscape of recruiting has changed since his time. Student-athletes nowadays want to be fully catered to and are ready to transfer any minute if they don’t believe in the program or if the colleges fail to fulfill their wants and desires. But he is optimistic about what he’s built.
But wait, why has Deion’s recruiting strategy come under the radar?
Deion Sanders’ recruiting strategy raises questions
Coach Prime is standing by his unique recruiting strategy—one he firmly believes has worked for him so far. Unlike many top college coaches, the Hall of Famer doesn’t make home or school visits. He didn’t do so in the recent recruiting cycle and has no plans to start now.
His philosophy is summed up in his signature phrase: “I ain’t hard to find.” If players want to see him, they’ll have to come to Boulder.
According to USA Sports, Colorado has allocated a $200,000 budget for Deion Sanders’ private air travel, yet he hasn’t used it once. This approach is a stark contrast to the methods employed by college football’s most successful recruiters. Seven-time national champion Nick Saban routinely made personal visits to top recruits, dining with families, attending school events, and even dancing with prospects to build relationships.
Kirby Smart is relentless on the recruiting trail, flying across Georgia and beyond to secure elite talent, cementing his status as the best recruiter in college football. Even 72-year-old Bill Belichick, now entering the college ranks after eight Super Bowl titles, has adopted a similar strategy. He has been traveling up and down the East Coast, dressed in a suit and tie, personally scouting top prospects in North Carolina.
So why doesn’t Deion do the same? Is he different from these championship-winning coaches? While they’ve built their legacies through hands-on recruiting, Sanders has yet to prove his approach can yield the same results.
As it stands, Colorado’s recruiting class ranks 37th in the nation and fourth in the Big 12. The Buffs currently have 14 hard commits, including five-star quarterback Julian Lewis, whom Deion flipped from USC. Other notable recruits include four-star offensive lineman Carde Smith (USC), defensive end London Merritt, and wide receiver Adrian Wilson.
Colorado lacks the budget and resources of powerhouse programs like Ohio State, Michigan, and Georgia, making it difficult to attract top-tier talent consistently. While Deion believes his unconventional approach is working, only the results on the field next season will tell the real story.
