Deion Sanders firmly denied the claim that he instructed the Colorado band to refrain from playing the fight song in favor of his son Shedeur’s music. Instead, Sanders began his weekly press conference by discussing the significance of the school’s fight song.
This incident highlights the unique approach Sanders takes in managing his football program, where even the smallest topics are addressed.
During the Tuesday news briefing, the Colorado Buffaloes coach responded to a report from local radio station 104.3 The Fan, which suggested he had asked the band not to play the fight song at Folsom Field after a touchdown by Shedeur Sanders.
“Whoever reported that I told the band not to play the fight song, that’s idiotic. Y’all know that,” Sanders stated, with his team set to face Colorado State on Saturday following a 28-10 defeat to Nebraska. “Get the facts before you run with false narratives.”
The university quickly issued a statement refuting the claim that Sanders had directed the Colorado band to skip the fight song during their 31-26 victory over North Dakota State in the season opener. The stadium had played various music pieces, including those for Shedeur Sanders and kicker Alejandro Mata, before the band resumed.
According to the statement, “The fight songs ‘Glory, Glory, Colorado’ and ‘Fight CU’ have been played after CU touchdowns and field goals for years and were played every time the Buffaloes scored against North Dakota State earlier this season.” It also noted that it is common in college football for individual players to have snippets of songs played during games.
Sanders is no stranger to such reports and expressed concern about how they can affect others, particularly the band involved in the situation.
“We were brought up to love thy neighbor as much as we can,” he remarked.
Earlier this season, Sanders took a stand against a newspaper columnist, prohibiting questions at football-related events due to what he considered negative coverage.
On the injury front, Sanders mentioned that his son Shilo Sanders, a starting safety, underwent surgery on Sunday to repair a broken right forearm and is expected to return in two to three weeks.
“He woke up medicated highly, said he was going to play this week,” Sanders joked. “But that’s just Shilo.”
Additionally, the already struggling running game may be without tailback Dallan Hayden, who is dealing with injuries from his time at Ohio State.
[Related: Joel Klatt’s Week 2 takeaways]
Regarding any tensions with Colorado State coach Jay Norvell, stemming from last season, Sanders downplayed the issue. The Buffaloes had a thrilling 43-35 double-overtime victory against the Rams at Folsom Field last year.
“I had the honor and the pleasure at the Big 12 meetings to meet his wife. She’s delightful,” Sanders said of Norvell. “I don’t judge people based off what they say when they’re emotional. I can’t do that. My heart ain’t built like that.”
Sanders also addressed a social media post by Corey Phillips, the team’s director of player personnel, who mentioned hearing a racial slur while leaving the Nebraska game.
“If they said it happened, though — when you guys say it happened, don’t it mean it happened?” Sanders responded. “You guys said a lot of things happened that really hadn’t happened. I don’t know anything about racist, so I try to stay out of the race stuff. I don’t like to play that card until I’m dealt that hand profoundly in front of others.”
He concluded his press conference with a reminder for journalists.
“Remember, validate everything before you run with it,” Sanders warned.
