Oklahoma State HC Mike Gundy drops unfiltered take on NCAA denying Deion Sanders' request for joint spring practice
Colorado coach Deion Sanders tried to shake things up some and add some spice to the off-season. Sanders, otherwise known as Coach Prime, wanted to have his Buffaloes take on an opponent for their spring scrimmage, and Fran Brown and Syracuse stepped up as a partner. The NCAA nixed the idea, citing competitve disadvantages.
Oklahoma State's Mike Gundy, a fellow Big 12 head coach, is one of Coach Prime's supporters in regards to that since-foiled plan. He discussed the topic with On3 on Wednesday.
"I'll be honest with you, I'm not going to waste my time on who's going to determine what the rules are anymore," Gundy said. "Because essentially there's not really enough of them to follow. And I'm not sure how they have grounds to say you can't do it. Like if somebody just goes and does it, what are they going to do to them?"
Coach Gundy had previously hopped onboard with Sanders' idea, floating the desire to reignite the Cowboys' Bedlam rivalry with Oklahoma as an exhibition series.
"That's something we've talked about," Gundy said. "I think it's a great idea. ... Honestly, for us, we should do a home-and-home with OU in the spring. They should come here on the 19th. I think theirs is earlier in the year, we should go down there and play a home-and-home against each other in the spring. Charge $25 a head, they can use it for NIL, we can use it for NIL.
"If they don't want to do two in one spring, we can do one here this year, do it there next year, and split the gate. Because we get tired of practicing against each other."
Who was against Deion Sanders' idea?
Analyst Joe DeLeone of "The Ruffino & Joe Show" revealed the names of those opposed to Deion Sanders' proposal during that podcast on Monday. On3 reported over the weekend that the FBS Oversight Committee wouldn't recommend a waiver for such a contest to take place.
"They decided to squash it because it provided a competitive and recruiting advantage that no other institutions are permitted to do," DeLeone said. "You kind of vaguely knew who was on these committees. You vaguely do, but you never pay attention to. You just get mad at the entity that is the NCAA.
"The names of the individuals that said no to this: Bret Bielema, Josh Brooks — who is the Georgia athletic director — Oregon State athletic director Scott Barnes ... University of Miami in Florida athletic director Dan Radakovich, and former Wyoming coach Craig Bohl."
While Gundy is interested in pushing back with anything more than his comments on Wednesday, he and coach Sanders are now aware of who wouldn't allow them to add a new flavor to the offseason.