Stephen A. Smith Makes Thoughts on Deion Sanders-Media Controversy Extremely Clear

ESPN's Stephen A. Smith was surprised to see Deion Sanders in the news heading into the 2024 season. But not for the right reasons.

Smith has been fervent in his support for the Colorado football head coach to succeed since he became the head coach two years ago.

Seeing the promise Sanders had when having the team start 3-1 following victories over nationally-ranked teams before the Buffaloes finished 4-8 in 2023, Smith hoped that Sanders would prove doubters wrong with performances on the field this year, not off.

Unfortunately for Smith, recent events involving Sanders has strayed from that. The head coach recently announced that the university banned Denver Post columnist Sean Keeler from asking questions to Sanders or any of the players on the football team.

Smith revealed his thoughts on the situation Monday morning on First Take, and he decided to be critical of Sanders' approach to the situation.

"I've known Deion for years. He's a friend and a brother. Got a lot of love for him. I do not agree with how he's handled the situation. I do not agree with how the Colorado program has handled the situation. And quite frankly, I'm a bit disappointed, because you have to have thicker skin than that," Smith said.

"If you don't want to talk to the reporter, don't talk to the reporter. But to have the program putting out a release announcing that we're not going to take questions as a program from this guy, it's utterly ridiculous."

Once the drama starts to fizzle, Sanders and the Buffaloes will look forward to their season-opener against North Dakota State on Aug. 29 at 8 p.m. ET.

Related: ESPN's Dan Orlovsky Defends Deion Sanders Amid Media Controversy