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Deion Sanders brought his expensive luggage to Colorado, but has decided when things get bad, it's up to him whether the players will face criticism for their record. After another embarrassing performance this past weekend against Arizona, Sanders mentioned postgame that he was not going to force his players to speak about the struggles currently ongoing at Colorado. So, what is the point of having these young men learn how to face the hard times that could present itself amid a rough season in Boulder? Do you honestly think players in college athletics want to stand in front of the media and be bombarded with tough questions about why the season has gone astray? No, they don't want to, but that's what being a leader is all about. Facing the tough times, along with the good. CFP Rankings: Ohio State Sits Atop First Poll Of Season, As Committee Seems To Have Actually Got It Right Speaking on Tuesday, Deion Sanders described himself as an ‘umbrella’ against ‘attacks and assaults’ from the media waiting to ask questions. Ok, that's a little dramatic and awkward, if we're being honest. When asked what qualifies as fair criticism for a player, in this new world of college athletics, Deion Sanders had an interesting take. "Everything is fair that you guys do, until you guys get personal," Sanders mentioned. "It's ok to talk about the performance. It's ok to talk about me and every realm, but when it gets personal, that's when you're stepping across the lines. You can't step across that line, because we don't. If we get personal with you, it's gonna be a problem. You're going to get sensitive, like we get sensitive in the part where you step across the line with the kids. "Keep it football related, and we're good." What are we talking about here? I don't remember media members attacking the Colorado roster in a personal way. Our job is not to attack these young men, but simply question what is transpiring on the field, and sometimes off the field. Reporters are not looking to attack a quarterback for something that transpired within their family, or any other circumstance. Maybe Deion Sanders is making this about what transpired with Shedeur Sanders over the past year, and the ‘hot takes’ that followed him during his time at Colorado, and into the NFL. But, let's be honest. A lot of that was through the lense of cameras that were focused solely on Sanders, with their ‘Well Off Media’ venture, where there were only certain aspects of the program being seen on a weekly basis. Why Won't Deion Allow Colorado Players To Speak? No True Leaders Right now, with an overhaul of the roster every season, there seems to be no true leaders of the football team that Deion feels comfortable enough to have them represent the program. That's not our problem, that's Deion's problem. No offense. We are living in a world where these athletes are being paid a decent amount of money to stand at a podium and answer questions about the season and taking ownership of the current situation. So, we can pay certain athletes on the team six-figures, but they can't answer a few questions about why things have not gone the way those inside the building expected? "That’s a great question, let me tell you why. I have a fatherly spirit," Sanders mentioned. "And I have an overseer spirit. I’m trying to shield my guys from certain things that may harm them. I know the temperature of the room. "I know if they can’t handle this at this time. Certain guys can, certain guys can’t. I can’t differentiate those guys and tell you, ‘You can talk to them, but you can’t talk to them.'. I don’t want to do that, so my job is to protect them and put an umbrella around them until I feel like they’re ready for the attacks and the assaults." Oh come on, that's just an excuse, and a bad one at that. Sometimes it's good for these athletes to face the music. We're seeing it all across college athletics right now. What makes Colorado so different? Nobody is making this personal towards an 18-22 year-old athlete. It's just business. And right now, it's bad business at Colorado.
