Deion Sanders Wants Jackson State To 'Beef Up' Before Committing To Play Alabama

Nick Saban and Alabama would like to play host to Deion Sanders' Jackson State team, but Prime Time is no hurry to make travel arrangements.

Earlier this week Bama's coach discussed his desire to schedule HBCU's in future seasons, particularly those that are in state. Though JSU is in Mississippi, the Tigers would no doubt be atop the list of schools Saban would like to host.

But before penciling their names onto the list, Deion's going to need some more time.

"He’s not gonna play us right now,” Sanders insisted, to AL.com's Mike Rodak. “We’re not ready to that. We’re not into sacrificing our kids to get a check. He got to give me another year.”

Sanders was of course referring to the check Alabama would write JSU to play the role of sacrificial lamb. Power 5 schools routinely hand out checks in the high six-figures to entice opposing schools to act as speed bumps on their way to what they hope is College Football Playoff contention.

In addition to not wanting to see his players injured or embarrassed, the payday likely isn't as important to he and the Tigers. Earlier this week OutKick noted that Deion himself is donating half of his salary (he's paid $300,000 annually) to the program's facilities this season.

And just last month, Sean "Diddy" Combs pledged $1 million each to Jackson State and Howard University.



Make no mistake, a trip to Alabama would be huge for the JSU program. It would mean more national exposure and would undoubtably provide a boost in their recruiting efforts. Sanders obviously recognizes this, but wants to ensure JSU can compete before agreeing to visit Bryant-Denny Stadium.

“I got to beef up in the front,” Sanders told AL.com “The difference in Power 5s and HBCUs right now is those big guys in the middle. It’s not the quarterbacks, it’s not the receivers and DBs or the skill positions. It’s those big dogs in the middle. We’ve got to beef up that to be able to compete with something like that.”

Bama has an opening on their schedule in the fall of 2023. Stay tuned.

 

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