Deion Sanders

Deion Sanders is confident his son Shedeur Sanders will hear his name called within the first three picks of the 2025 NFL Draft.

"I think it's going to be one of the top three, for sure," Sanders said when asked if he had any idea which team would select Sanders on the Rich Eisen Show (47-second mark.)

Deion Sanders continued: "I think he's the most qualified for that level, and for what comes with that position, in the face of the franchise than anybody in the draft."

The Colorado head coach told Eisen he has spoken to both the Cleveland Browns, who hold the No. 2 pick, and the New York Giants, who are drafting third, about Shedeur.

He noted that he hasn't yet talked to the top-drafting Tennessee Titans, but noted the Titans have spoken with his son.

Sanders' confidence that Shedeur is a top-three pick comes amid multiple rumors tying the former Buffaloes quarterback to the Giants at No. 2.

SNY's Connor Hughes reported last month that the Giants have been targeting Shedeur Sanders since before the 2024 draft.

Had Sanders declared for the previous draft, the Giants would have had him as "a target in the second or third round," according to Hughes.

Sanders then said when attending the East-West Shrine Bowl in Arlington, Texas in late January he knew he would "play here very soon against the Cowboys."

Giants head coach Brian Callahan then compared Sanders to Joe Burrow when speaking with ESPN's Turron Davenport earlier this month.

Multiple teams selecting at the top of the upcoming draft are in need of a quarterback. Given that Shedeur and Miami's Cam Ward are the two signal callers most commonly listed as consensus first-rounders, it seems likely Deion could end up being correct about hearing his son's name called early on April 24.

Colorado head coach Deion Sanders confirmed that he's spoken to multiple teams regarding potential landing spots for his son, Shedeur, ahead of the 2025 NFL draft.

Sanders explained that he's met with "a few" teams and privately expressed his concerns about his son being drafted by them during an appearance on The Dan Patrick Show.

"I would meet with them behind closed doors," Sanders said (9:15 mark). "I would not call them out. I would not put them on front street and talk about their organization because people work too hard to make it right instead of a guy like me ignorantly saying something wrong. I would meet with them privately and talk about my concerns so we can have an understanding."

Jeff Howe of The Athletic previously reported that the Tennessee Titans, owners of the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 draft, met with Shedeur for "a longer time than usual" at the East-West Shrine Bowl and Deion was also involved.

Shedeur thrived at quarterback for the Buffaloes in 2024, completing 74 percent of his throws for 4,134 yards and 37 touchdowns while getting picked off just 10 times. He also scored four times on the ground.

Shedeur takes it in himself for the Colorado lead 😤

(via @CFBONFOX)
pic.twitter.com/l4ugxS07R4

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) November 9, 2024

The 23-year-old was projected to go to the Titans with the No. 1 pick in the latest mock draft from Bleacher Report's NFL Scouting Department.

B/R NFL Scout Dame Parson highlighted Shedeur's pocket passing in his scouting report of the signal-caller.

"Shedeur Sanders is one of the purest passers from the pocket in college football and the NFL Draft class," Parson wrote. "This will make him appealing to NFL offensive coordinators and head coaches."

Following an impressive senior year with the Buffaloes, Shedeur shouldn't have to wait long to hear his name called during the 2025 draft.

As he navigates through the pre-draft process, Deion confirmed that he's spoken to teams that he may not be thrilled with his son joining.

Colorado football head coach Deion Sanders has full confidence that ex-Buffaloes star athlete Travis Hunter can play full-time in the NFL at wide receiver and cornerback.

Sanders made those remarks on the Dan Patrick Show on Friday (4:35 mark).

"Why not?" Sanders said when Patrick asked if he could play both roles full time.

"You playing the NFL game, and it's much slower than the college game. The college game is no-huddle. It's tempo. We have plays after plays after plays after plays. The pro game is so darn slow. You go into the huddle, you take your time, you call another play.

"Not only that, you can't touch them, you can't hit them in the secondary, so the risk of being injured is not as such as the college football game, the pro game protects you even more.

"I think what he does should transcend to the next level. He's already shown what he's capable of doing. The reason they're saying he can't do both because they never fathom to do both."

Hunter, the reigning Heisman Trophy winner, caught 96 passes for 1,258 yards and 15 touchdowns (in addition to one rushing score)last season. He also made 35 tackles, broke up 11 passes and snagged four interceptions.

Needless to say, Hunter was exceptional on both sides of the ball. The B/R NFL Scouting Department thinks highly of the generational talent, ranking him first overall among 2025 NFL draft prospects.

Sanders' constant compliments on Hunter shouldn't go unnoticed for teams, and it'll be a shock at this point if he falls below the top four or five. He also had this to say on him (four-minute mark).

"Travis has never been mistaken for an idiot on the football field. He's very intelligent, very intelligent on the field and off the field. Had a 4.0 GPA. Let's get that straight. So he's a smart, young man. He will be prepared for whatever you place in front of him. Generational. Loves the game, don't party, don't smoke, don't drink.

"Kind of secludes himself, kind of an introvert, if you should say, but he can play some darn football."

We'll find out how his new NFL team uses him down the road. But right now, Hunter needs to get through the pre-draft process before the draft begins on April 24 in Green Bay.

Deion Sanders said he thought about the possibility of coaching in the NFL after owner Jerry Jones reportedly reached out to him in January amid the Dallas Cowboys' search for a Mike McCarthy replacement.

The Colorado head coach did not formally interview for the job before Jones and the Cowboys promoted offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer to the role.

"It's intriguing. Now, I did think about it, like, what are the possibilities?" Sanders said in a Friday appearance on ESPN's First Take. "But I think at this point in time, I'm called to the college game.

"I'm called to the young men, I'm called to those cities, those towns, those communities. That's who I'm called for to make impact in that at this stage and age of my life."

Fox Sports' Jordan Schultz reported in January that Sanders and Jones had spoken about the head coaching vacancy and that Sanders was "considered a top candidate" for the role.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported that there was at least "some" mutual interest between the team and former player in the job.

The Cowboys ultimately targeted candidates with experience on NFL staffs, including Schottenheimer, Kellen Moore, Robert Saleh and Pete Carroll, in formal interviews for the position.

After the Schottenheimer hiring, Sanders said a recent talk with former Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman on his Tubi talk show "We Got Time Today" (h/t Reuters) that he hadn't wanted to coach in the NFL in any case "because of the way they practice, the way they go about it."

Whether Sanders considers potential NFL head coaching jobs in the future could depend on where his sons end up after the 2025 NFL Draft. Sanders has previously said he would "only" consider a pro coaching job if it was to work with Shedeur or Shilo Sanders, and Shedeur could be on track to be taken off the board on Day 1 of the upcoming draft.

Deion Sanders believes that his son Shedeur should be the most sought-after quarterback at the 2025 NFL Draft.

During an appearance on First Take, the Colorado Buffaloes coach expressed his belief that Shedeur is the "most qualified" quarterback in the draft due to his significant experience and his experience:

"Shedeur has started every game in high school. every game in college except one and he's prepared for this next level on this journey that he's about to go on, and I think he's the most equipped. He's had, Cam, you know, the seven different offensive coordinators. And you know, a line that was always criticized and scrutinized, but he still stood and delivered. I think he's the best one for the job for any city and he the most equipped. Oftentimes we have these quarterbacks that been on these elite teams, now they get in a situation where it's not as conducive to their success, and they choke. He's always been up under criticism, he's always been scrutinized, he's never had the best of, but he's made the best of. So I think he's the most qualified, by far."

Sanders is rated as the No. 2 quarterback and No. 16 overall prospect in the 2025 NFL Draft by Bleacher Report's NFL Scouting Department. He was a two-year starter at FCS Jackson State before transferring to Colorado after his father was hired by the Buffaloes.

During his time with Colorado, Sanders threw for 7,364 yards with 64 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. He helped lead the Buffaloes to a 9-4 record in 2024 and was named the Big-12 Offensive Player of the Year for his efforts.

Cam Ward is rated as B/R's top quarterback in the draft and had a sensational 2024 season as well, throwing for 4,313 yards with 39 touchdowns and seven interceptions while finishing as a Heisman finalist.

As teams evaluate Ward and Sanders on their viability to be franchise signal-callers, Deion Sanders' belief is that Shedeur will be ready to help his team improve as soon as he puts on the jersey.

Colorado is adding a legendary former running back to its coaching staff.

Marshall Faulk, a three-time NFL Offensive Player of the Year winner, is joining Deion Sanders' Colorado staff as a running backs coach, the team announced on Thursday. The hire marks Faulk's first collegiate coaching job.

One of the greatest to ever play the game.

Welcome our new Running Backs Coach, Marshall Faulk, to Colorado!#GoBuffs pic.twitter.com/pv2z0SB2w8

— Colorado Buffaloes Football (@CUBuffsFootball) February 7, 2025

Faulk, who was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2011, is now the third Hall of Famer on Colorado's staff, joining Sanders and Warren Sapp, who joined the Buffs staff as a senior quality control assistant ahead of the 2024 season.

Though Faulk doesn't have prior experience as a coach, his resume speaks for itself. He racked up 12,279 rushing yards and 100 rushing yards during his NFL career, adding 6,875 receiving yards and 36 touchdowns through the air.

Faulk, the 2000 MVP, knows a thing or two about winning too, as he helped lead the St. Louis Rams to a win in Super Bowl XXXIV.

The Buffaloes will have a challenge in 2025 as they look to replace the production of star quarterback Shedeur Sanders and Heisman-winning two-way star Travis Hunter. Bringing in a legendary player like Faulk could help Colorado get its running game going after relying mostly on the passing game over the past two years.

Sanders inherited a Colorado team that went 1-11 in the season before his arrival. The Buffaloes had some growing pains in Year 1, going 4-8 in 2023 before taking a major leap in 2024, finishing the season 9-4.

Colorado was an upset loss to Kansas away from reaching the Big 12 title game, which could have helped the Buffs punch a ticket to the College Football Playoff. With Faulk joining the staff, Colorado will look to make another leap in Year 3 of the Sanders era and potentially compete for a championship.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame may become more exclusive following recent rule changes.

The idea that too many borderline candidates were being enshrined in Canton, Ohio, generated plenty of attention in August 2022 when Deion Sanders suggested as much and said, "the Hall of Fame ain't the Hall of Fame no more."

Sanders is one of the best defensive players in league history and said perhaps his gold jacket should be a different color to indicate as such.

"The Hall of Fame ain't the Hall of Fame no more."

Deion Sanders shared some thoughts 👀

Agree?

🎥 @NFL_DovKleimanpic.twitter.com/sJvLlucCIM

— The Athletic NFL (@TheAthleticNFL) August 12, 2022

With the 2025 class set to be announced Thursday, Mike Sando of The Athletic explained the Hall of Fame implemented stricter rules in August in an effort to "help ensure that membership in the Hall of Fame remains elite."

Sando explained that the 179 new members inducted from 2000 to 2024 was significantly higher than the 118 selected the previous 25 years, although that did include a special 20-member NFL Centennial class in 2020.

What's more, the maximum of five modern-era candidates have been selected for 17 straight years after a 4.1 average the previous 40 years.

With the new rules in place, the selection committee will reduce the 15 finalists to seven before each voter then picks five of the seven for enshrinement. Yet candidates must receive 80 percent of the vote for inclusion, although if fewer than three make that threshold the three with the most votes are selected.

"The chances for a five-man class are diminished under new rules," Sando noted since in the past the 15 finalists were reduced to five before voters then simply said "yes" or "no" for those five with 80 percent yes votes required.

It remains to be seen if the new rules will have an impact on this year's class, which will be revealed from the list of 15 modern-era finalists:

• Eric Allen, CB
• Jared Allen, DE
• Willie Anderson, OT
• Jahri Evans, G
• Antonio Gates, TE
• Torry Holt, WR
• Luke Kuechly, LB
• Eli Manning, QB
• Steve Smith Jr., WR
• Terrell Suggs, LB
• Fred Taylor, RB
• Adam Vinatieri, K
• Reggie Wayne, WR
• Darren Woodson, S
• Marshal Yanda, G

The class will be announced during Thursday's NFL Honors show.

Deion Sanders, who was tied to the Dallas Cowboys' head coaching vacancy before the team promoted former offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer to the role, says he wasn't cut out for an NFL head coaching job.

Sanders discussed his candidacy in a conversation with former Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman on his Tubi talk show "We Got Time Today," per Reuters.

"I couldn't coach pro ball," Sanders said.

Sanders continued: "I couldn't coach pro ball, because the way they practice, the way they go about it, I couldn't take it. As a man, and as a football enthusiast, and I care about the game. The game is still providing for Troy and I, so there is no way I could allow that to happen on my watch. That would be tough."

Sanders has previously given similar answers when asked about potentially coaching in the NFL. He told Bri Amaranthus of Sports Illustrated in 2023, ahead of his first season with Colorado, that he didn't "have any desire or ambition to coach in the NFL."

"I have a problem with men getting their checks and not doing their jobs," Sanders said in 2023. "I would be too tough as a coach in the NFL because I still have those old-school attributes."

Although the Cowboys only officially interviewed Schottenheimer, Leslie Frazier, Robert Saleh and Kellen Moore for the open head coaching position, owner and general manager Jerry Jones also reportedly held a "informal meeting" with Sanders, per DallasCowboys.com's Nick Eatman.

After that talk, Sanders told ESPN's Adam Schefter in January it had been "intriguing" to hear from Jones.

"I love Jerry and believe in Jerry," Sanders said, per Schefter. "After you hang up, and process it, and think about it, it's intriguing. But I love Boulder and everything there is about our team, the coaches, our student body and the community."

Sanders' sons, Shilo and Shedeur Sanders, are joining two-way Colorado star Travis Hunter in leaving Colorado for the 2025 NFL Draft. If Sanders remains in Boulder without them, the third-year Buffaloes head coach will be tasked with rebuilding his team around a new quarterback this fall.

Start marking your calendars, Big 12 fans.

The 2025 football schedule has arrived.

The Big 12 revealed the entire schedule for all of its teams Tuesday for the upcoming campaign that will start on Aug. 23 with the highly anticipated showdown between Iowa State and Kansas State in Ireland.

Here is a look at the full slate:

Week 0 (8/23)

• Iowa State vs. Kansas State (neutral site)
• Fresno State at Kansas

Week 1 (8/30)

• Hawaii at Arizona
• Northern Arizona at Arizona State
• Auburn at Baylor
• Portland State at BYU
• Jacksonville State at UCF (Thursday)
• Cincinnati vs. Nebraska (neutral site)
• Georgia Tech at Colorado
• Stephen F. Austin at Houston
• South Dakota at Iowa State
• Wagner at Kansas
• North Dakota at Kansas State
• UT Martin at Oklahoma State
• TCU at North Carolina (Monday)
• Arkansas Pine Bluff at Texas Tech
• Utah at UCLA
• Robert Morris at West Virginia

Week 2 (9/6)

• Weber State at Arizona
• Arizona State at Mississippi State
• Baylor at SMU
• Stanford at BYU
• North Carolina A&T at UCF
• Bowling Green at Cincinnati
• Delaware at Colorado
• Houston at Rice
• Iowa at Iowa State
• Kansas at Missouri
• Army at Kansas State
• Oklahoma State at Oregon
• Kent State at Texas Tech
• Cal Poly at Utah
• West Virginia at Ohio

Week 3 (9/13)

• Kansas State at Arizona
• Texas State at Arizona State
• Samford at Baylor
• Northwestern State at Cincinnati
• Colorado at Houston
• Iowa State at Arkansas State
• Abilene Christian at TCU
• Oregon State at Texas Tech
• Utah at Wyoming
• Pitt at West Virginia

Week 4 (9/20)

• Arizona State at Baylor
• BYU at East Carolina
• North Carolina at UCF
• Wyoming at Colorado
• West Virginia at Kansas 
• Tulsa at Oklahoma State
• SMU at TCU
• Texas Tech at Utah

Week 5 (9/27)

• Arizona at Iowa State
• TCU at Arizona State
• Baylor at Oklahoma State
• BYU at Colorado
• UCF at Kansas State
• Cincinnati at Kansas
• Houston at Oregon State
• Utah at West Virginia

Week 6 (10/4)

• Oklahoma State at Arizona
• Kansas State at Baylor
• West Virginia at BYU (Friday)
• Kansas at UCF
• Iowa State at Cincinnati
• Colorado at TCU
• Texas Tech at Houston

Week 7 (10/11)

• BYU at Arizona
• Arizona State at Utah
• UCF at Cincinnati
• Iowa State at Colorado
• Houston at Oklahoma State
• Kansas at Texas Tech
• TCU at Kansas State

Week 8 (10/18)

• Arizona at Houston
• Texas Tech at Arizona State
• Baylor at TCU
• Utah at BYU
• West Virginia at UCF
• Cincinnati at Oklahoma State

Week 9 (10/25)

• Houston at Arizona State
• Baylor at Cincinnati
• BYU at Iowa State
• Colorado at Utah
• Kansas State at Kansas
• Oklahoma State at Texas Tech
• TCU at West Virginia

Week 10 (11/1)

• Arizona at Colorado
• Arizona State at Iowa State
• UCF at Baylor
• Cincinnati at Utah
• West Virginia at Houston
• Oklahoma State at Kansas
• Texas Tech at Kansas State

Week 11 (11/8)

• Kansas at Arizona
• BYU at Texas Tech
• Houston at UCF
• Colorado at West Virginia
• Iowa State at TCU

Week 12 (11/15)

• Arizona at Cincinnati
• West Virginia at Arizona State
• Utah at Baylor
• TCU at BYU
• UCF at Texas Tech
• Kansas State at Oklahoma State

Week 13 (11/22)

• Baylor at Arizona
• Arizona State at Colorado
• BYU at Cincinnati
• Oklahoma State at UCF
• TCU at Houston
• Kansas at Iowa State
• Kansas State at Utah

Week 14 (11/29)

• Arizona at Arizona State (Friday)
• Houston at Baylor
• UCF at BYU
• Cincinnati at TCU
• Colorado at Kansas State
• Iowa State at Oklahoma State
• Utah at Kansas (Friday)
• Texas Tech at West Virginia 

Big 12 Championship Game (12/6)

---

While a number of games stand out, attention naturally turns to the nonconference clashes. After all, that will be the Big 12's best chance to prove itself against other leagues across the country as teams battle for positioning in the 12-team College Football Playoff.

Notably, Cincinnati will play Nebraska from the Big Ten in the Kansas City Chiefs' Arrowhead Stadium, Baylor hosts Auburn from the SEC, Deion Sanders' Colorado Buffaloes host Georgia Tech from the ACC and TCU travels to face Bill Belichick's North Carolina Tar Heels from the ACC all in Week 1.

The opportunities to make a national statement don't stop there, as Oklahoma State travels to Oregon, Iowa State hosts Iowa and Kansas travels to Missouri.

Perhaps the most unusual nonconference game will pit two teams from the Big 12 against each other when Kansas State and Arizona play in Week 3. That is considered a nonconference game because it was scheduled when the Wildcats were still in the Pac-12 before they joined the Big 12 during conference realignment and expansion.

The Wildcats and everyone else will be attempting to catch reigning champion Arizona State, which defeated Iowa State in the Big 12 Championship Game and then pushed powerhouse Texas to double-overtime in the College Football Playoff.

Arizona State faces a nonconference test at Mississippi State from the SEC before playing Sanders' Buffaloes, Baylor, Utah and the Cyclones in a Big 12 title game rematch all on the road.

It won't be an easy title defense, and now the Sun Devils and everyone else know what they have to navigate to reach the CFP.