Deion Sanders Fires Shots Back At Oregon With Strong Opinion On Conference Realignment Amid NIL Era Disgruntlement

Deion Sanders is not interested in double standards. The first-year head coach of Colorado had a lot to say about the continued realignment within college football and took aim at those who pointed fingers at his school just last week.

Friday was a day that changed college sports forever.

Oregon and Washington officially agreed to join the Big Ten alongside USC and UCLA in 2024. Meanwhile, Arizona, Arizona State and Utah came to an agreement with the Big 12.

That came shortly after Colorado also agreed to pack up and join the Big 12.

As a result, the Pac-12 has just four schools left — Stanford, Cal, Washington State and Oregon State — and its future is entirely up in the air. It may re-expand or merge with the Mountain West. It may fold.

Either way, the Buffaloes will play just one year in the Pac-12 before they leave the conference alongside the other seven programs. Sanders' first year in the Pac-12 will be his last.

When it was first announced that Colorado was moving to the Big Ten, Oregon head coach Dan Lanning had a lot to say. He took shots right in their direction.

The Ducks announced their exit from the Pac-12 four days later and offered Coach Prime the chance to fire right back. And he did.

Deion Sanders hit right back.

Yeah, same teams that were talking about us, right?

Sanders then went on to offer his thoughts on the ongoing realignment across the sport. It does not matter what conferences look like because Colorado is focused on the same goal regardless.

I don't care nothing about no different teams moving. We're trying to win, man. I don't care what we play. I don't care what conference, who we're playing against. We're trying to win.

And then he went on to offer refreshing perspective on the entire situation. Coach Prime sees all of the chatter surrounding NIL. He sees all of the people, including administrators and coaches, who are trying to change the rules surrounding how athletes are compensated while in school. Players are allowed to get paid, legally, and are seeking the greatest financial opportunity possible.

Meanwhile, colleges and universities all over the country are changing conferences in an effort to secure the largest revenue share possible. That doesn't sit right with Sanders.

All this is about money, you know that. It's about a bag. Everybody is chasing a bag. Then you get mad at the players when they chase it. How's that? How do the grown-ups get mad at the players when they're chasing it when the colleges are chasing it?

Coach Prime asked the questions that many others are not willing to ask when it comes to all of the conference movement and the double standard that comes with it.

He is not afraid to speak his mind and call things how he perceives them. People are quick to criticize that approach, but Sanders does not care what others think.

At the end of the day, conference realignment comes down to money. As does NIL.

The two things run in direct parallel to each other, but opinions don't always add up. Sanders is the voice of reason and he's not afraid to call out people with whom he disagrees.