While he is currently the head coach of Colorado, Deion Sanders will always be linked to Florida State.
But when it comes to his alma mater being snubbed by the College Football Playoff, Coach Prime doesn’t have much sympathy.
“I can’t be upset. We’re recruiting against those guys,” Sanders said of the Seminoles while appearing on The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz on Monday. “You’ve gotta understand that, this is business now. I can’t be mad.”
While the Hall of Fame cornerback was laughing throughout his response, he proceeded to defend the committee’s selection of Alabama over the 13-0 ACC champs. Ever the showman, Sanders didn’t take issue with Florida State being left out of the four-team field in favor of a more appealing TV product in the Crimson Tide.
“I look at it as this is entertainment, but this is business,” he said. “So there’s no way you’re going to leave Coach [Nick] Saban and Alabama out of a playoff.”
https://twitter.com/LeBatardShow/status/1731697796250583409
The idea of the College Football Playoff — or the sport itself — being a made for TV product is hardly new. But it has never been more apparent than with the Seminoles’ snub. While the selection committee had the impossible task of narrowing a field of five deserving teams — six depending on your stance on Georgia — to four, leaving out an undefeated Power Five conference champion out in favor of two teams with one loss each left many with a sour taste in their mouth.
That group, however, doesn’t include arguably the most famous player in Florida State history, as Sanders made it clear he took no issue with the entertainment aspect of the committee’s decision. In fact, according to Sports Illustrated‘s Sportsperson of the Year, from that perspective, the team we should really be blaming is Washington.
“They’re really good, but you know who messed it up, was Washington,” Sanders said of his fellow Pac-12 school. “They messed it up because that’s not a huge market and they’re in. You’ve got Michigan, Texas, Alabama — Washington. And they can play… this is made for TV. I can’t wait to see how it plays out.”
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.