"Close to his dad.": Darrell Colbert Jr. draws comparisons between Deion and Shedeur Sanders amid negative media narrative
Coach Prime and Shedeur Sanders took over the Colorado program when it was 1-11 in 2022, and the dynamic father-son duo turned things. They ended their last season together with an impressive 9-4 record in 2024.
However, despite their success in putting Colorado back on the college football map, many fans and analysts have expressed their concerns with Shedeur Sanders' abilities, questioning his athleticism along with his arm strength.
On top of that, there is an ongoing narrative about Shedeur's brash and arrogant attitude, which has allegedly impacted his draft stock as well.
During an interview on SportsCenter on April 19, quarterback coach Darrell Colbert Jr. brushed off these narratives and drew comparisons between Coach Prime and Shedeur Sanders when asked who the Colorado QB resembles in terms of confidence:
"Probably close to his dad. That's where he got it from. You know, I don't think of any quarterback that I could think of that comes, that comes to mind right now, but I think the perfect example is his dad.
"You know, his dad had the utmost belief in himself, even, you know, taking a step and going to Jackson State say what he was going to do there, and then, you know, going to Colorado and doing what they've done there."
Colbert Jr. pointed out that Shedeur took a different route in his college career, going to FAU before transferring to Jackson State despite having several offers coming out of high school.
Deion Sanders drops blunt statement on Shedeur Sanders' jersey retirement controversy
When Colorado announced that it would be retiring Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter's jersey numbers, many fans had mixed reactions to the news.
While most understood Hunter receiving the honor, many fans and analysts were upset about the decision to retire Shedeur's number 2.
During a press conference held on Thursday, Coach Prime quickly addressed the situation:
“Let’s get the elephant out the room,” Sanders said. “I don’t want to talk about this too long. I’m just gonna talk briefly and let it go. We ‘re talking about Shedeur. We ain’t talking about nobody else. If his last name wasn’t Sanders, we wouldn’t have this discussion. Only reason we’re having this discussion is his last name is Sanders. That’s it.”
Hunter and Sanders became the fifth and sixth players in Colorado history to have their jerseys retired.