Colorado football coach Deion Sanders sipped some cranberry juice, smiled and cracked some jokes.
“I’m in a really great mood,” Sanders told reporters at his weekly news conference in Boulder on Tuesday, Sept. 29. “Let’s keep me there.”
Sanders, 59, didn’t seem worried despite a number of troubling issues facing his team heading into a homecoming game against Texas Tech on Saturday, Oct. 3.
▶ His quarterback position is up for grabs again. He said his decision on a starting quarterback will depend on how practice goes this week. Utah transfer Isaac Wilson played the second half of last week’s 23-13 loss at Baylor, replacing starter Julian “JuJu” Lewis. If Wilson starts vs. Texas Tech, he would be Colorado’ fourth new starting quarterback since
last season.
▶ His team is 2-2 and has lost two straight road games. Now the Buffaloes face two straight opponents ranked in the Top 15 of the US LBM Coaches Poll, including No. 13 Utah on Oct. 17. Meanwhile, the Buffs are 2-12 against Power Four Conference teams since the last game of the 2024 season.
▶ One of Sanders’ best defensive players, linebacker Tyler Martinez, might be out for the season with a leg injury suffered against Baylor. “I’m gonna miss Mr. Martinez because he’s one of my favorites,” Sanders said.
Deion Sanders addresses quarterback controversy
Lewis has a 2-4 career record as a starting quarterback after starting the first four games of this season. He’s only 19 years old and was a touted high school recruit out of Georgia. But he struggled against Baylor and threw two interceptions the week before in a 41-7 loss at Northwestern.
Wilson is the younger brother of NFL quarterback Zach Wilson and had a “great spring” practice season, Sanders said. Sanders hinted he may have already made a decision at quarterback but also said it would depend on how things go this week. He might have tipped his hand when asked about his recent conversations with Lewis and Wilson.
“I haven’t talked to JuJu,” Sanders said. “I talked to Isaac. The kid is excited about the possibilities… He stood up in a meeting and really talked to the team about this and that challenged them in many ways. So I’m proud of that young man. I really am.”
Sanders also mentioned a third quarterback, freshman Kaneal Sweetwyne, who is more of a dual-threat option.
Deion Sanders cracks some jokes
Sanders batted down the notion that Sweetwyne didn’t play last week because he had to wear the same jersey number (14) as receiver Quanell Farrakhan Jr. Teams have duplicate jersey numbers sometimes because their rosters feature more than 100 players, but two players can’t be on the field wearing the same number.
After the loss at Baylor, social media users questioned whether Sanders limited his quarterback options last week because of this.
But the issue can be solved by simply putting a different jersey on one of the players.
“You joking,” Sanders said in jest. “So we got extra jerseys? That’s how stupid some of this stuff is, man.”
Another reporter asked about his television ratings going down. In Sanders’ first season, he averaged about six million viewers per game. But last year and this year, it’s closer to two million.
Sanders asked how TV ratings are determined.
When told they are compiled by the Nielsen company, Sanders asked, “Who is Nielsen?”
He dismissed it as an issue.
“I’m not a worried about no ratings, man,” Sanders said. “I’m worried about a dern record. Like, I want to win”
Deion Sanders explains his perspective after a 2-2 start
Sanders also acknowledged a member of the news media, Liz Munsterteiger, whose husband Adam died earlier this season. He said she helps keep things in perspective.
"So how can I get upset?" Sanders said. "Because we got our butts kicked twice and we won twice. And we're kind of even at the end of the month. Now let's flip this script and start it over. But knowing what you're dealing with, you give me strength and you give me energy, girl. Love you for it. Keep on keeping on."
Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email: bschrotenb@usatoday.com
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Deion Sanders has another QB controversy. Did he tip his hand on new starter?
