Alabama stars reveal how Saban’s coaching style exonerates recent Deion Sanders actions

A recent Deion Sanders critique looks unfair when one considers how other respected college football coaches run their respective ships.

The Deion Sanders tenure so far as the new head coach of the Colorado football program has not been without some drama.

Sanders has been critiqued for wanting to put his stamp on the program, encouraging inherited players to enter the transfer portal because he’s, “bringing his own,” luxury luggage with incoming transfers. Over 50 players have entered the transfer portal already. Sanders has hinted at major incoming transfers.

But the nit-picking over his coaching style and his early adjustment to the program has been a little too detailed at times, and quite honestly, in the opinion of this writer, entirely unfair.

At the heart of one critique suggesting Sanders doesn’t care about his players is that he hasn’t learned the names of every player yet. Here was his response to a question on that topic recently.

"“I know a lot of their names… They know I know them. You gotta understand we’re here all day, man. In the cafeteria, for breakfast, or all the way to dinner. So I get to know them. But I like when they make me know them. When they’re producing, and when they’re hustling and when they’re getting to the ball.”"

Deion Sanders learning player names based on merit is no different from Nick Saban

There are currently 93 players listed on the Colorado football page, not to mention 47 football staffers that Sanders needs to get familiar with. Oh, and a Buffalo that he’s been well acquainted with, too.

That’s a lot of names for anyone to remember.

Speaking to Sterling Holmes of the Stacking the Box podcast on behalf of Courtyard Mariott, Will Anderson Jr. and Bryce Young remarked that Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban also doesn’t really bestow names over player numbers until they’ve earned that privilege.

"“I graduated from him just calling me by my number to like, Will,” Will Anderson Jr. remarked about Saban. “My freshman year, like, he’s just like, ’31 this, 31 that, 31 this’ and then, I guess I had been doing so good at practice one day I walked past him and he was like, ‘Hey Will, how you doing?’ And it was just like shocked me, ’cause, ‘You know my name!’ And then, he just, our relationship has been good ever since then.”"

Quarterback Bryce Young had a similar experience, and a giddy memory over when Saban first referred to him as “Bryce”.

"“I remember when my [name to number] graduation day was. We were in a team meeting going over, we were watching film. And [Saban] will call out the good, bad, and uglies. And whenever he calls anyone out, you know, he calls anyone out just by their number, unless you’ve played well enough, he’ll call you by your name. And it was the same thing,” Bryce Young remarked about his excitement when he got his name first acknowledged by the Alabama head coach."

Sanders is far from the only coach making players perform to earn the right of a name acknowledgment. If that’s really such an issue, we might as well be calling out all the coaches who struggle to learn every name.

Courtyard by Marriott is partnering with Bryce Young and Will Anderson Jr. to spotlight the “Courtyard VIP Fan Zone” and consumer ticket giveaway for the 2023 NFL Draft in Kansas City.