Report: Deion Sanders 'Will Only Target' New HC Job That Lets Him 'Be His Full Self'

Deion Sanders has done a fantastic job at Colorado, turning a program that went 1-11 in the year prior to his arrival (2022) into a 9-3 program that currently sits 20th in the Associated Press poll.

Naturally, that two-year turnaround could (and may have already) grab the attention of bigger programs looking to make a coaching change.

As far as the potential of Sanders bolting Colorado for another school, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler and Adam Rittenberg wrote the following, noting that the Pro Football Hall of Famer would "only target programs that will allow him to be his full self."

"If LSU or Florida make changes next season, Sanders certainly could be a candidate. The same goes for Auburn if it moves on from Hugh Freeze. Sanders will only target programs that allow him to be his full self, sources said, which means extra elements and people around the program that aren't present at most places.

'There aren't a lot of Deion Sanders growing on trees,' an industry source said. 'The package of who he is, is rare. So it's very much the place.

'You've got to give credit to CU and their leadership and the administration for going out and saying, 'Let's go all-in.'"

Sanders once starred at Florida State, which dropped from 13-1 in 2023 to 2-10 in 2024. That program is in turmoil, and head coach Mike Norvell just fired both coordinators. The team's swoon begs the question regarding Norvell's future, but it doesn't appear the hypothetical door would be open for Sanders (or anyone) imminently.

"A Sanders-FSU reunion wouldn't happen until 2026, at the earliest, and even that seems unlikely," Fowler and Rittenberg wrote.

Ultimately, programs looking to make a turnaround could look toward Sanders.

"It's going to be hard for Colorado to hang onto him," a college coaching agent told Rittenberg. "Everyone has taken notice, and rightfully so, of what he's doing."

For now, Sanders remains at Colorado, which has a to-be-determined bowl game. It's unclear where the Buffaloes are headed, but the latest projection from David Kenyon of Bleacher Report has the team going to the Alamo Bowl against BYU.