Deion Sanders opened his comments Monday on the Southwestern Athletic Conference coaches’ Zoom session with some of his Jackson State team’s offensive and defensive superlatives.
The undefeated and ninth-ranked team in the Football Championship Subdivision top 25, JSU is No. 4 in both scoring defense (10.0 ppg) and scoring offense (47.0 ppg), as well as the No. 1 overall defense at just 175 ypg.
“I’m happy, I’m pleased with the coaching staff, with the team in all facets, offense, defense as well as special teams,” Sanders said. “Even the outpouring of love we’re receiving from the fans and the attendance as well.
“Defensively, I think we’re ranked No. 1, second in passing, eighth in rushing defense, tied for first in TDs, seventh in takeaways. Offensively, we’re second in competition percentage; I don’t know how we’re second. Fourth in first downs gained, third in passing offense, second in scoring offense.”
Then, Sanders really spoke his mind. With his backdrop as both a College Football and Pro Football Hall of Famer, Sanders launched a Heisman Trophy campaign for the Tigers’ quarterback – his son, Shedeur Sanders.
“Our quarterback should be mentioned upon the Heisman race,” Sanders said. “That’s up to you guys, I want you to push those pens, push those computers and do what you can. Because you put his numbers up next to the guys in Power 5s, he’s doing as much or more than they’re doing right now.
“So when they start talking about Heismans, which I saw before the previous game, I got a little upset that they didn’t mention us, period. They didn’t mention what Shedeur is doing. Forget that he’s my son and his last name is Sanders; any other man doing what he’s doing and accomplishing what he’s accomplishing, this far, this early on, deserves the recognition. That’s all. Thank you for allowing me to have a dad moment.”
In addition to having the Tigers off to a 4-0 start and one of the highest national rankings in program history, Shedeur Sanders has posted FCS’s No. 2 completion percentage (81-for-111, 73%) and that division’s fourth-most passing touchdowns (10) as well as fourth-most touchdowns responsible, with a total of 12.
Shedeur Sanders’s numbers are unquestionably elite, and he’s rarely been forced to play four full quarters as JSU has dominated its competition this season.
How does Shedeur Sanders’s stat-line stack up against those aforementioned Power-5, Football Bowls Subdivision leaders? It’s loosely comparable but well off the mark of some of college football’s brightest stars at its biggest programs.
Mississippi State’s Will Rogers has thrown for 1,386 yards and 16 touchdowns – the second-most yards and most touchdown passes alongside Ohio State sensation CJ Stroud.
Wake Forest’s Sam Hartman, who’s played only three games, has 13 touchdowns while Washington transfer quarterback Michael Penix, the former starter at Indiana, has paced the nation with 1,388 passing yards.
But the Sanders effect – both father and son – has been undeniable for Jackson State, Historically Black Colleges and Universities and, likewise, for FCS programs.
It was earlier this month that Shedeur Sanders utilized his Name, Image & Likeness partnership to dole out Beats by Dre headphones to all of his teammates.
Moreover, it’s been 28 years – 1994 – since the late, great Steve “Air” McNair engineered a transcendent season at Alcorn State University that landed McNair as a Heisman Trophy finalist.
Coach Prime said any attempt to discount Shedeur Sanders’s accomplishments based on the program’s FCS status was flat-out wrong and insisted such prejudice would not pass the eye-test.
“That’s not true. You’ve got to understand when you look at a player and you look at his skill-set, it don’t take you long to understand this kid could play at any level,” Deion Sanders said. “Travis Hunter could play anywhere he wanted to play; Shedeur could have gone anywhere he wanted to go. Assess it by that nature. We’ve gotta stop that foolishness and start really give players what they’re due.
“I’m likening it to a kid that we’re going to see that he’s a phenomenal street-ball player and he can flat-out ball and you’re telling me he can’t hoop with the best at (New York’s) Rucker Park? I think some of them could have been at the NBA.
“You can’t tell me (Shedeur) can’t play in the NFL. He can play in the NFL, but he’s not good enough to be in the Heisman running? That’s a lie. I got you. If he’s good enough to play in the NFL, he’s good enough to be in the Heisman (discussion).”