Deion Sanders Says He’s ‘SHAME’ Of NFL Franchises For Only Entering One HBCU Player In The Draft

Deion Sanders has bizarrely criticized all but one of the NFL’s franchises after the New England Patriots became the only organization to draft a player from an HBCU school.

Sanders, who relinquished his coaching position at Jackson State — an HBCU — in December for the University of Colorado football program, said he was “embarrassed” after the NFL Draft closed.

New England brought one of Sanders’ longtime players, Isaiah Bolden, from Jackson State with the No. 245 overall pick. He was the only player from a historically black college and university to be selected.

‘So proud [of] you @isaiahbolden23 you deserved to be ranked much higher, but i’m really proud of you,” Sanders wrote Saturday night.

“I know how much you want this. Shame on the 31 other @nfl teams that couldn’t find draft value in ALL of the talented HBCU players and we still had 3 draft worthy players at JSU.”

Sanders’ stance could be viewed as ostensibly hypocritical given his defecting to the highly publicized and more competitive Pac-12 conference. After an unprecedented level of exposure to Jackson State and HBCU football, Sanders left Mississippi school for the Buffaloes program and the chance to prove himself in a Power Five conference.

He signed a five-year, $29.5 million contract with the Buffaloes – which included further incentives. With him, Sanders brought five-star corner/wide receiver Travis Hunter, college football’s No. 1 recruit in 2022, whom he originally brought to Jackson. Seven JSU players entered the transfer portal and committed to Colorado, with several staff leaving HBCU school to follow Sanders.

“I never said they were going to put a headstone with my name on it in Jackson State,” Sanders said in December after his appointment to Boulder. “But if I don’t fit into someone else’s plan and purpose, it’s ridiculed… You just forgot my plan and God’s plan. That’s where the dysfunction comes in.’

While few players have been drafted from Historically Black Colleges—five in the past two seasons—about 70 percent of the league’s players are black. Three black quarterbacks were chosen in the top four picks, while 48 of the players drafted in the first two rounds (63 picks) were of African American descent.

The NFL introduced the first HBCU combination this season in an effort to shed more light on the programs’ prospects, as Coach Prime’s former employer. Two HBCU players were invited to the annual NFL Combine in Indianapolis in March.

Sanders, just as he did for JSU and HBCUs, has created huge hype around the Colorado program. More than 47,000 fans attended CU’s spring game in the snow last week. It was broadcast on ESPN while the reigning national champion was simultaneously broadcast on ESPN2, such is the intrigue with Sanders.

Season tickets for the perpetual wrestling program have already sold out – the first time since the 1996 season. Sanders spent three seasons with the SWAC school, leading them to two conference titles before losing in back-to-back bowl games.

Sanders’ approach was one of ruthlessness in the months leading up to Colorado’s first season under his rule. Since the acquisition, 46 stock exchange players have entered the portal – more than any other program in the country.