Evaluating Deion Sanders' 2023 coaching options, including Auburn
Editor's note: The story was originally published Oct. 28. It has been updated to reflect that Auburn has fired head football coach Bryan Harsin.
It was a quote that sent shockwaves across the college football universe.
Less than two weeks ago, Deion Sanders appeared on CBS’ 60 Minutes and was asked if he would consider leaving Jackson State, where he currently coaches, for a Power 5 program.
"I’m gonna have to entertain it," Sanders said. "Straight up. I’d be a fool not to."
Since being named Jackson State's head coach back in September 2020, Sanders boasts a 23-5 (.821) record — including a 16-2 (.889) conference mark — earning him Southwestern Athletic Conference Coach of the Year honors last season.
Whether Sanders chooses to remain at JSU beyond this season remains up in the air, but college football minds across the nation naturally ponder where "Coach Prime" might be coaching next. And with the news Monday that Auburn has fired head coach Bryan Harsin, Sanders' name immediately surfaced as a potential candidate for the SEC program.
On "The Number One College Football Show" podcast, FOX Sports college football analyst RJ Young touched on several potential landing spots for Sanders — Auburn among them — before sharing what he thinks the ideal move is for the young coach.
[Auburn fires head football coach Bryan Harsin]
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RJ Young breaks down potential next moves for Deion Sanders. Will he stay at Jackson State or find another home in 2023?
On Sanders coaching at Auburn:
"I don’t think that Auburn is a good football job. Guz Malzahn was doing as good as anybody has done there since maybe Pat Dye, and he beat Nick Saban, and yet what did he have to show for it? I kick in the butt on the way out. … I just don’t see that as a place that would really let Deion Sanders be Deion Sanders, which is what you would be hiring. If you want to keep the controls at Auburn, that’s not your man. … I think it’s nice to be mentioned, but I would turn that job down."
On Sanders coaching at Miami (FL):
"I think that's a good choice, on par with USC. It's a private institution that cares about its football, and it's one on which Deion Sanders would have the South Florida recruiting area to his advantage. This is a man that has been really great in recruiting over the last couple of years. … [Miami] doesn't seem to know how to get out of its way here since 2002. Maybe Deion Sanders could overcome that."
On Sanders staying at Jackson State:
"I think that this is the move in 2023. I don't think that Deion Sanders is going anywhere. I think he will be coaching at Jackson State next year and perhaps continue this run of undefeated football in a new era for Jackson State.
"I’m good with Deion Sanders being at Jackson State because of the good he can do. There are lots of players who he can affect, who he can change their career paths just by being connected to them. … If he can extend those sorts of connections with the players on that roster, my goodness, he could change the fortunes of a university that is up against it. For you to be able to be Deion Sanders where you are, and turn this thing into the kind of program that people are proud of, that intrinsically has to mean more."
On if Sanders does choose to leave Jackson State:
"If you are going to leave Jackson State, please do not leave for anything less than Alabama. Nick Saban is going to coach for as long as he's gonna at Alabama, but then I would say to Deion Sanders, ‘Hey, we have a spot for you if you want it, because we have the resources and the fan base to let you go win.'
"You have to be looking at programs on that level. And right now, all the programs that are on that level — where you have the financial and fan base backing that you would need to compete for national championships — are taken. We’re gonna be sitting here and wait through 2023 and possibly 2024, or even 2025, for Deion Sanders to just run it up until such a job comes open."
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