Deion Sanders became the head coach of the Jackson State Tigers football team last year and has made a major impact. This season, the Tigers posted an 11-1 record and defeated Prairie View A&M in the SWAC Championship game last week. Now, Sanders and his team will get ready to play in the Celebration Bowl against South Carolina State on Dec. 18, which is the de-facto Black college football national championship game. PopCulture.com recently caught up with Sanders, who revealed how his team can win the big game.
“We just need to not beat ourselves and do what we do,” Sanders, a Pro Football Hall of Fame cornerback, told PopCulture. “What we’ve done all season long has been unbelievable. And we only played one game when we all showed up at once. What I mean by that offense, defense as well as special teams, we executed like crazy only once. So the rest of the games, we’ve taken a tough role. We hadn’t beat ourselves, but we made it tough on ourselves. We didn’t play up to our best. Even the last game that we just won in the SWAC Championship. We didn’t play our best game, but the kids gave it their best. And that’s what I’m happy about.”
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Sanders’ leadership has helped Jackson State get back to its winning ways. The Tigers won their 17 conference titles and the first since 2007. They are also one win away from claiming their fourth Black college national title and first since 1996. But when did Sanders realize Jackson State had a chance to do something special?
“I realized that on signing day, way prior, that we had acquired some wonderful talent, that that talent was unusual to the HBCU world and that all we needed was a little time and that time was the spring that we could evaluate that we could see what we had, that we could make the possible and necessary changes and that we were sore from then on,” Sanders explained. “And that’s what we did. What we are right now, we’re not surprised. I know it sounds cocky. I know it may sound a bit arrogant, but I have a quote that’s on my wall right now that said, ‘Do not let my confidence offend your insecurity’ because we are very confident in who we are, what we are and how we get down.”
While Sanders is making sure his team is ready for the Celebration Bowl, the former NFL star is making sure he looks good every time he is out and about. Sanders has partnered up with Gillette to create the Gillette x Deion razor. Along with helping guys across the country get a clean shave, Gillette also announced a $50,000 donation to the JSU Tiger Fund Athletic Foundation at Jackson State University.
“I shave daily,” Sanders said.”The only time I don’t shave is when I don’t have to be seen in front of anybody and I know I can let the gray out and I’m good with it, but partnering with Gillette, coming up with this great Razor with my necklace on it with my goal whistle, my Prime logo 21 and ‘look good, feel good,’ which everybody understands is one of my most famous quotes, it’s been a dream come true. But not only that, to understand that Gillette is savvy enough and understanding our culture enough to donate 50 grand towards the academic development of Jackson State and our student-athletes is unbelievable and willing to match another 50 grand as well.”
