Colorado Buffaloes football coach Deion Sanders addressed the media during his weekly press conference Tuesday, previewing an anticipated Big 12 Conference showdown with UCF .
The host Knights (3-0, 1-0) announced a sold-out crowd in June for their first head-to-head matchup with Colorado (3-1, 1-0), which returned to the Big 12 officially in August after a 13-year run in the Pac-12.
Here is everything Sanders had to say with regards to the Knights , Gus Malzahn and Florida athletes when asked by reporters.
"We've got to load the box up and pray to stop the run. I feel good about our scheme, and I feel good about what I saw at practice (Tuesday). I feel good about what we've been accomplishing versus the run defensively. We've got to improve in some certain areas, but I think we get (defensive lineman) Chidozie (Nwankwo) back as well. That's a tremendous plus because of his attitude, his leadership and the way he works. Tremendous plus."
Deion Sanders on coaching against UCF Knights coach Gus Malzahn
"It's an honor. You've got to understand I was a high school coach visiting those guys, taking my kids on the college tours. And now to have the opportunity to coach on the same field, it's an honor. It's a tremendous honor. I've got love for him. After we play them, then I can call him for advice. He's not going to give me advice before, but he's one of the guys I would call for advice on certain situations that may occur with college football players. I'm pretty sure that everyone is dealing with the guys that want to redshirt. I'm pretty sure everyone is dealing with that right now, so you're having those meetings. We're not the only ones having several meetings, but I'm pretty sure a host of college football coaches are having those. And I would like to know how they handle certain situations. But maybe after the game. That's what Chip Kelly told me last year, 'After the game, you can call me.'"
Deion Sanders on himself and his Florida-born players returning close to home
"It's good now until you get there to play. You've got to win. We don't want to go down there and think it's just a road trip, a field trip. We want to go down there and win. So we're practicing our butt off to make sure we dot I's and cross T's, and we give it a valiant effort. It starts in practice. Everything starts in practice. I told the kids, 'It's like a vending machine; whatever you put in, you get out. Unless you go to Vegas; you put a little in and expect to get a lot out. But that's called gambling where I come from.' And you don't want to gamble with your career, with your life and with the time you have left. … Our Florida boys are excited, but we're on the job. It's on the job."
Deion Sanders on what makes Florida players different
"That hunger. That thirst. That will. That want. That me-against-the-world. That don't-have-the-best-of-things-but-we're-going-to-make-the-most-of-things. The way our parents came up, the desolate and turbulent times that we've come through — the naysayers, the haters. Florida may have the least-paid high school coaches in the country but may produce the most athletes in the country. I don't know how that happens. Even when it comes to facilities, I'm sure Texas is No. 1 when it comes to facilities, but Florida is still putting out dogs. I don't know if anybody has done a study lately, but in the NFL, I'm pretty sure Florida's up there ranked pretty darn high. And it's not a huge state.
"One of the kids just asked this question, and (Warren) Sapp took over the conversation and let them know if you want to put an All-Pro team out there with Florida boys, we got one. That just happened before the game in the cafeteria, the night before. One of the guys was talking about how Georgia was like that, and Sapp had to check him on that."
Deion Sanders on Colorado leaving early for UCF because of Hurricane Helene
"Our players like simplicity, and I do, too. I don't want to take a risk and a chance. We were going to leave Thursday anyway. The storm is supposed to hit Thursday. So we don't want to take that chance where the storm hits Thursday and now we can't get there until Friday evening and now it's a rush. We're trying to get ahead of the curve and be smart with it. Our guys like consistency, so being settled and having a consistent plan in place works in our favor. We've already secured practice facilities. We've already sent trucks on the road. We're right where we want to be. We just want to make it as consistent as possible for our young men."
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Deion Sanders' plan against UCF Knights football's run game: 'Load the box up and pray'
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