Colorado's Deion Sanders Downplays Tension with Matt Rhule, Nebraska Before Rematch

Colorado head coach Deion Sanders downplayed his program's rivalry with Nebraska by praising Cornhuskers head coach Matt Rhule ahead of Saturday's matchup.

"I have a ton of respect for Matt Rhule," Sanders said, per ESPN's Kyle Bonagura. "He's in— I call it our class of coaches. We all took on a tremendous test last year along with [Arizona State] Coach [Kenny] Dillingham and several others.

"So, I feel like we're a fraternity. So, I root for that class of head coaches that came in that year."

Sanders took a different tone toward Nebraska when speaking about Rhule's program ahead of the matchup last season.

"I've learned the serious nature of this rivalry, and I'm embracing it 100 percent," Sanders told reporters in 2023. "This is personal. That's the message of the week. This is personal. It's a rivalry. We take it very seriously."

The second Colorado-Nebraska matchup of the Sanders and Rhule eras kicks off on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET.

Rhule shared a similar message of respect toward Colorado's program prior to the Saturday game.

"I just look at this as a really good football test for two teams," Rhule told reporters on Monday (13:05 mark.) "Two teams that have plans on being good teams and want to be relevant at the end of the year.

"They're gonna play us, we're gonna play them. And we're not even in the same conference. So while I know it matters to people, and it matters to us, and it matters to them, we're gonna see where we are. I'm just trying to get the football right, and nothing else."

Colorado won the two teams' last matchup, 36-14, after Sanders' son quarterback Shedeur Sanders expressed frustration with Nebraska team members for standing on the Buffaloes' logo at center field before the game.

Shedeur Sanders then said after the game he believed Rhule had shown "disrespect" to his father by taking an apparent jab at the Buffaloes' use of the NCAA transfer portal prior to the 2023 season.

"The coach said a lot of things about my pops, about the program, but now that he wants to act nice, I don't respect that because you hating on another man, you shouldn't do that," Sanders told reporters after the win last September.

"It was just, all respect was gone for them and their program... the respect level, it ain't there because he disrespected us first."

Rhule addressed Sanders' comments, which he said did not bother him, in his Monday press conference.

"I got love in my heart, and a lot of respect for what they're doing," Rhule said on Monday (25:30 mark of the press conference.) "Nothing really bothered me. At the end of the day, if he thought he felt like I disrespected his father, he's standing up for him, good for him. My son would stand up for me."

These words of reconciliation do not mean the Huskers head coach isn't looking to gain home field advantage from the crowd at Memorial Stadium on Saturday.

"Let's all be Nebraska Nice on Sunday," Rhule said. "It should be a loud, loud raucous atmosphere."

Both programs will be seeking a second straight victory this weekend. Colorado opened the season last week with a 31-26 win over North Dakota State, while Nebraska dominated in a 40-7 victory over UTEP.