5 SEC schools who would be better off with Deion Sanders than their current coach

For at least this season, Deion Sanders will be the head coach of the Colorado Buffaloes. This will be the last time he gets to coach his sons Shedeur and Shilo, as well as Travis Hunter in college before they all turn pro. Sanders has said before that he is only interested in coaching college football, so he is not going to follow them to the NFL. That being said, how long for Colorado is Coach Prime really?

This is a big prove-it year for the Buffs, as they went 4-8 overall and 1-8 in conference play during Sanders' first season in Boulder. They played competitively at times for the most part, but simply didn't have the depth to beat anyone in Pac-12 play other than a completely lifeless Arizona State team. I think it serves Sanders to stay at Colorado for the foreseeable future, but I am not the guy.

In this extreme hypothetical exercise, what if I told you there are at least five SEC programs that might benefit from the Coach Prime boost over the guy they currently have in charge? Some might be obvious than others, while some could be just perfect for Sanders to come in. Regardless, the regular season is only weeks away, and we are not going to be seeing Sanders replacing any of them just yet.

Let's start with a beloved former offensive line coach who needs to go bowling to keep his job.

5. Arkansas Razorbacks

I put Arkansas here at No. 5 for three reasons. One, Sam Pittman needs to get the Hogs to at least 6-6 to get another year on the job. Otherwise, he is cooked. Two, Sanders is the type of galvanizing presence that could get all the ducks in a row with the big-pocketed Arkansas boosters. Think Jerry Jones, the Waltons and Tyson Chicken. And three, nothing has stuck and they don't have any shame.

This is the state Bill Clinton hails from, as well as the same university that just hired John Calipari and former persona non grata in Bobby Petrino back into the fold. Keep in mind that Sanders used to star for Jones' beloved Dallas Cowboys. I would hire Gus Malzahn, Barry Odom and maybe even give Alex Mortensen a shot before getting into bed with Coach Prime here, but this is Arkansas football, baby!

Razorbacks football is the biggest thing in state. With a proud tradition, why not go all in on Prime?

4. Vanderbilt Commodores

Admittedly, I like what Clark Lea is trying to build at Vanderbilt with Barton Simmons and company. The former Commodores fullback left a great job at Notre Dame to try and help save his alma mater. There are academic challenges at a school like Vanderbilt, but I cannot even begin to describe the type of buzz to have Sanders in a major metropolis like Nashville to make Vanderbilt football matter.

Honestly, it would probably yield similar success to what Lea is experiencing now and what Sanders experienced last year, which is fleeting to none. However, we have seen the 'Dores win big relatively recently under James Franklin, as well as be respectable bowl-caliber teams at times under Derek Mason and at the tail-end of the Bobby Johnson era. Sanders will make the facilities so much better.

Inserting Sanders into the Vanderbilt equation makes the Commodores feel like an SEC team again.

3. Florida Gators

He would never do this ... or would he? If Sanders went to go coach at his alma mater's biggest in-state rival, it would send shockwaves throughout the entire southeast. Sanders taking over for Billy Napier at Florida would make folks in Tallahassee absolutely furious. It would also grab the attention of college football fans in Coral Gables, Orlando and even in Tampa, a city that could have had him...

Truth be told, this will be Napier's last year coaching in Gainesville, as the Gators have the hardest schedule in the entire Power Four. They finish the year with Georgia, Texas, LSU, Ole Miss and Florida State. That is a prison sentence. What could get them out of their misery is a primal force of nature in Coach Prime to try and rock the rest of the SEC like a hurricane. Others have done this stuff before.

If you want to look at a guy leading his alma mater's rival, look at Kyle Whittingham over at rival Utah.

2. Mississippi State Bulldogs

God, I feel so bad for Mississippi State fans. After nine great years with Dan Mullen and three wonderful years with the late Mike Leach, it has mostly been the Joe Moorhead mess sprinkled in between. The Zach Arnett promotion from within didn't take, and I am not sure that Jeff Lebby has the temperament or acumen to have staying power in the SEC down in Starkville. Coach Prime just might.

Sanders would add a type of buzz to the Bulldogs program only Leach could provide. Keep in mind he won prolifically in-state at the HBCU level at Jackson State. Sanders could do a killing with the amount of recruiting resources he would have available in-state. Hiring him would make Lane Kiffin furious over in Oxford. While he will likely own Lebby in the next three Egg Bowls, Prime not so much.

Mississippi State has won too much in the last decade-plus to be this forgotten about under Lebby.

1. South Carolina Gamecocks

This is the job I think where it makes the most sense for Sanders to go. We have seen Shane Beamer win big games and recruit at a high level at South Carolina, but his erratic personality makes building a consistent winner there impossible under his watch. Sanders is also an outspoken individual, but I think hiring him to lead the Gamecocks would resonate throughout the SEC and in South Carolina.

I mean, Shilo Sanders already played there before under Will Muschamp. South Carolina is the type of program where you can land four-star recruits from all over the southeast. Clemson looms large in-state, but Dabo Swinney is absolutely terrified of using the transfer portal. Sanders has tried to rebuild Colorado using the transfer portal. If Sanders ever leaves for the SEC, it has to be for USC.

Because I can actually envision this happening at some point, this does feel like Sanders' next job.