Deion Sanders Criticized By CFB Fans After Shedeur, Colorado Lose to Raiola, Nebraska

Paul KasabianFeatured Columnist IISeptember 8, 2024

Andrew Wevers/Getty Images

Colorado fell behind 28-0 at halftime en route to a 28-10 road defeat to Nebraska on Saturday evening.

Buffaloes quarterback Shedeur Sanders (23-of-38, 244 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT) felt constant pressure all night, taking five sacks and 10 quarterback hits. He also took a helmet-to-helmet hit in the fourth quarter from Nebraska linebacker Mikai Gbayor, who was ejected for targeting.

The Colorado offense was out of rhythm all evening because of the pressure, and Sanders had to make many plays on the run, with defenders in his face or with his back against the wall.

Colorado’s first five drives, which amassed a total of 12 yards, ended as follows: punt, turnover-on-downs, pick-six, punt and punt.

Tommi Hill returned a Sanders pass seven yards for a touchdown after Colorado faced a 1st-and-10 from its own two-yard line.

The PAT gave Nebraska a 14-0 lead with 5:46 left in the first quarter. Colorado never recovered.

FOX College Football @CFBONFOXPICK SIX NEBRASKA 😱@HuskerFootball pic.twitter.com/YYGTsj6f4o

Colorado fared better in the second half, scoring its lone touchdown after Sanders found LaJohntay Wester for a seven-yard score with 8:45 left. But it was too little and too late at that point.

There were some highlights. Two-way star Travis Hunter caught 10 passes for 110 yards, and Colorado’s defense shut Nebraska out in the second half.

But this game wasn’t in doubt after the first two quarters. Nebraska ran for 149 yards, and Dante Dowdell scored twice. True freshman Dylan Raiola was effective and efficient with 185 yards and a touchdown on 23-of-30 passing.

Ultimately, it was a brutal loss for Colorado, and Hall of Famer (and head coach) Deion Sanders ended up being a talking point.

Sanders took over a team that went 1-11 in 2022. Colorado quadrupled its win total in 2023, but the Buffaloes also finished last in the Pac-12 with a 1-8 conference record.

This year brought more hope in year two for Sanders’ program.

Colorado snuck by Division I-FBS North Dakota State 31-26 in its first game, but the squad suffered a brutal defeat in Week 2.

There’s a lot of season left, but given how the team failed to protect Sanders and fared in the first half overall, there was much criticism of the head coach on Saturday evening.

Grant Paulsen @granthpaulsenThere are going to be a bunch of college football media members barred from asking Deion Sanders questions this week.

Derek Ryan @longhornderekCan we all just move on from the Deion and Shedeur Sanders hype train? https://t.co/naejHEpPp1

Mr. Duolingo @ConorJDooley_94Deion Sanders is one of the worst football coaches I’ve ever seen at the college or pro level

Every week this Colorado team is unprepared, undisciplined, unaware, and unimpressive

Austin @kozl93The Deion Sanders experiment is over. This Colorado team is so undisciplined. This is what happens when you refuse to recruit, rely strictly on the transfer portal, & let the coaches sons have way too much of a platform.

Will Kunkel @WillKunkelFOXDeion Sanders has done some AMAZING things for Colorado — building a good football team isn’t one of them.

Synthetic Sports @SyntheticSportsColorado year 1 vs year 2 under Deion Sanders pic.twitter.com/gWZUbrmjrZ

George Wrighster III @georgewrighsterI really hope Deion Sanders has learned his lesson…

YOU CANNOT BUILD AN O-LINE THOUGH THE TRANSFER PORTAL.

It doesn’t matter how good your weapons are if you can’t get them the ball

Denver Broncos 365 @DailyBroncosAt some point, Deion Sanders ability to coach needs to be questioned

Mike Gill @MikeGillShowDeion Sanders is not qualified to coach D1 football • He is a tremendous marketing guy for Colorado, but a horrendous football coach.

𝑟𝑒𝑏𝑒𝑙 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑓𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠® @fcckjuliusdeion sanders should’ve stayed at jackson state if he was going to coach like this in the big leagues. You can’t blame the players all the time. This is also a coaching staff problem

ONLY 21 MILLION BITCOINS @ONLY21MILLION_Deion Sanders TERRIBLE PLAY CALLING ALL GAME

Dustin Tran @dustinstranDeion Sanders needs to be getting RIPPED by the media moving forward. Honeymoon for Deion Sanders should be over at #Colorado.

Tapouts & Touchdowns Podcast @TapoutsandTDsCan we finally admit that Deion Sanders only looked like a good coach because he was taking D1 talent to play an FCS schedule? Anyone without blinders on saw this coming—they shouldn’t have even beaten NDSU last week #Colorado #collegefootball

STL Sports @Cards_BluesDeion Sanders hype train officially off the rails as Nebraska drills Colorado?

Alex Roberts @Arob5902Deion Sanders has been completely outclassed in this game. His scheme was picked apart on the first play. The team is undisciplined, they lack focus, they cannot make plays when it matters. They look lost and flustered. Just awful from top to bottom.

Colorado will hope for a rebound on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET when the team visits Colorado State.