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Black Twitter is in a frenzy over Jackson State University coach Deion Sanders' move to leave the HBCU for a position at Colorado.
On Saturday (December 3), The University of Colorado Boulder officially announced that Sanders would become the next head coach of its football program, per the NFL.
The news of Coach Prime, a Pro Football and College Football Hall of Famer, parting ways with JSU came as the school won its second consecutive Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) championship Saturday after an undefeated regular season.
Sanders started his tenure as JSU's head coach in 2020, leading the Tigers to a 4-3 record during an abbreviated season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, the team went 11-2 and won their first SWAC title game since 2007.
The Colorado Buffaloes hope Sanders will resuscitate its program, similar to what he accomplished at JSU. The university parted ways with head coach Karl Dorrell in October after an 0-5 start to the season and went 1-6 under interim head coach Mike Sanford, finishing last in the Pac-12 conference.
While some Twitter users are supporting Coach Prime's career move, others are criticizing the former NFL player for abandoning the HBCU for a PWI.
"Everybody mad at Deion Sanders. He’s helped JSU, set attendance records, new practice fields, new locker rooms, Under Armor endorsements deal. Countless other things. You leave places better than you found it. He did that. He’s done a lot for HBCU Football in 3 years," one Twitter user wrote.
"Not mad at Deion, but being a big name at an HBCU and him recognizing the systemic struggles that HBCUs face and then he leaves, does NOTHING to help solve the problem. True HEROES at HBCUs find ways around salary concerns because their mission is BIGGER than money," another tweeted.
"If the best HBCU coaches run off to big white schools at the earliest opportunity, how can we convince the best players to go to (and stay) at HBCUs?" another tweet reads.
"3 seasons. 2 SWAC championships. An undefeated season. Brought the number one highschool recruit to a HBCU, got College Gameday at a HBCU for first time and got Jackson State the most recognition they’ve ever gotten as a school. Prime did exactly what he was supposed to do," a Twitter user said.
See more reactions below to Colorado naming Sanders its new head coach.
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