US LBM Coaches Poll: Colorado is humbled by Oregon and falls out of the top 25
The latest USA LBM Coaches Poll is in and it’s missing Colorado, who beat Oregon in convincing fashion.
SportsPulse, USA TODAY
EUGENE, Ore. – Colorado head football coach Deion Sanders attended his postgame press conference Saturday wearing his usual sunglasses, jewelry and confidence, never losing his trademark confidence regardless of what happened here Saturday against Oregon happened.
His Buffaloes were defeated by the Ducks 42-6. It was his first loss as Colorado coach (3-1). And despite the national “Cinderella story” his team became after Colorado finished 1-11 in 2022, it was never even close.
“One thing I can say honestly and openly: You better get me now,” said Sanders. “This is the worst thing that will happen to us. You better get me now.”
He called it a “good old-fashioned butt-kicking” and said, “We’re all responsible for this. Let’s start with me.” But he also said he was looking at the bigger picture.
“I know I’m wearing sunglasses, but I can look into the future and it looks good,” he said.
Sanders even brushed off comments made before the game by Oregon coach Dan Lanning that drew a stark contrast between his team’s “substance” and the Hollywood “flash” of Sanders and Colorado.
“The Cinderella story is over, man,” Lanning told his players before the game, as shown on ABC. “They fight for clicks. We fight for victories. There is a difference, right? There is a difference. This game is not played in Hollywood. It’s played on the grass.”
What did Deion Sanders say about this?
He admitted to hearing about it.
“Yes, I have messengers,” he said. “But God bless him, man. He is a great coach. He did a great job. God bless him. Take your shots. They have won. I don’t shoot. They have won.”
He also said the difference between No. 19 Colorado and No. 11 Oregon is “definitely not” a talent deficit, but confirmed that he believes his team is seven or eight good players away from where it needs to be.
“I don’t say anything just to say it, for a click, as opposed to what someone says,” Sanders said, referring to Lanning. “I keep receipts.”
COACH STEVE: Deion Sanders walks a fine line as a parent and coach by “rating” his children.
At the same time, he admitted that his outstanding personality plays a role in how his team is perceived.
“Teams try to beat me,” he said. “They’re not trying to beat our team. They keep forgetting that I don’t play anymore. I had a great career…. That’s it really. I signed up for this, so let’s go.”
Some might argue that things are getting harder for his players. Sanders disagreed.
“These are grown men,” the Pro Football Hall of Famer said. “I’m not out there. If I played every (Colorado) coach out there, we would be completely dominant.”
How did Colorado get beaten so badly?
Oregon quarterback Bo Nix completed 28 of his 33 passes for 276 yards and three touchdowns, leading the way for an Oregon team (4-0) that scored touchdowns on its first three possessions and led 35-0 at halftime.
In contrast, Sanders’ son Shedeur struggled at quarterback as Colorado’s offensive line gave up seven sacks in front of a raucous green-and-yellow crowd of 59,889. Shedeur Sanders completed 23 of 33 passes for 159 yards and a touchdown – a 6-yard pass with 2:51 left on an overcast, mild day at Autzen Stadium.
In the end, Colorado gave up 522 total yards to Oregon and did itself a disservice by committing 12 penalties for 106 yards.
“There’s nothing magical or anything they did that was just unreal or surreal,” Shedeur Sanders said afterward. “We just didn’t execute our game plan.”
The quarterback, Deion’s son, also said that his team missed star player Travis Hunter “a lot” but that that wasn’t the reason they lost the game. Hunter, a two-way player at receiver and cornerback, did not participate because he suffered a liver injury in an overtime win against Colorado State last week.
“We played like hot trash,” Deion Sanders said. “That surprised me.”
The hype surrounding Colorado is taking a hit
The loss dampens much of the hype surrounding Deion and Shedeur Sanders after the Buffaloes captivated the nation with their play before Saturday. In their first three games combined, they attracted more than 25 million viewers on national television. Deion Sanders also appeared in a segment on “60 Minutes” last week.
After learning about all of this and then watching his team build a 35-0 lead at halftime, Lanning even seemed to stick another finger in Colorado’s eyes when he told an ABC reporter about the TV viewership.
“We’re not done yet,” he said at halftime. “We are not satisfied. I hope all the people who watched every week will watch this week too.”
Deion Sanders greeted Lanning after the game, hugged Nix and then spoke about his team’s humility after the game.
“People across the country will say this is what they need to humble themselves,” Sanders said. “We weren’t arrogant or whatever. We are self-confident people. If our confidence violates your insecurity, the problem is yours, not ours. We expect to do well.”
And he doesn’t think his team “needed” this to learn about themselves.
“It’s like saying, if you get into a car accident or something, ‘Oh, he needed that to slow down,'” Sanders said. “You do not need. That’s just stupid. That’s just something that happened and “They got the best out of us today. That’s it.”
What did Dan Lanning say afterward?
He said his team usually hears a pregame speech, but this time he said, “I suspect there was a camera in there.”
“There is no speech that wins games,” he added. “Players win games.”
He said this while wearing a yellow Nike “Bodacious” T-shirt honoring Nix, the Auburn transfer who defeated Shedeur Sanders in a battle of aspiring Heisman Trophy candidates.
“I think Coach (Deion Sanders) is doing a phenomenal job,” Lanning said. “Obviously he has generated great enthusiasm and response from his players and I know they will bounce back from this. At the same time, sometimes I get a little passionate, a little excited about what I want to accomplish for our team, and I just want to say that I need to humble myself a little bit. This is a game.”
Now Colorado must regroup to face another tough, high-scoring opponent next Saturday at home – No. 5 Southern California, a team the Buffs have never beaten in 16 tries since 1927.
Sanders said his message to the team after Saturday’s game was simple.
“Get off your ass and let’s go.”
Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email: [email protected]