After Nick Saban’s comments from Wednesday where he named Jackson State and Texas A&M in a rant about name, image and likeness, Tigers head coach Deion Sanders has finally responded to Saban’s comments after vowing to on social media.
Sanders gave his thoughts about what Saban said during an interview with Andscape where he shared that he would like to talk with him publicly about the matter.
“I haven’t talked to Coach Saban,” Sanders said. “I’m sure he’s tried to call. We need to talk publicly — not privately. What you said was public. That doesn’t require conversation. Let’s talk publicly and let everybody head the conversation. You can’t do that publicly and call privately. No, no, no.”
On Wednesday, Saban claimed that Jackson State had paid a million dollars for top recruit Travis Hunter and bragged about it. There were initial rumors when Hunter first committed to Jackson State in December that he received a $1.5 million NIL deal, but Sanders was quick to deny the report.
Hunter got into the mix himself on Twitter where he state that if he was paid a million dollars then why does his mother still lives in a three-bedroom house with five children?
I got A mil?😂But my mom still stay in a 3 bed room house with five kids 🤣
— Travis Hunter (@TravisHunterJr) May 19, 2022
Sanders would respond to Hunter’s tweet as well saying that he didn’t even make a million dollars as the team’s head coach.
“I don’t make a million. Travis ain’t built like that. Travis ain’t chasing a dollar,” Sanders said. “Travis is chasing greatness. Travis and his family don’t get down like that. They never came to us in search of the bag. They’re not built like that. This kid wants to be great. He wants my hands on him. He wants me to mold him. He wants me to be his navigational system through life. He wants to be that dude.”
Although Saban has been wrapped in controversy over the past two days, Sanders said that his comments have not changed how he feels about him.
“I still love him. I admire him. I respect him,” Sanders said. “He’s the manga cum laude of college football and that’s what it’s going to be because he’s earned that. But He took a left when he should’ve stayed right.
“I’m sure he’ll get back on course. I ain’t tripping.”
Sanders also acknowledged that Saban was discussing these topics with numerous major boosters and Alabama business heads.
“Coach Saban wasn’t talking to me,” Sanders said. “Coach Saban wasn’t talking to Jimbo Fisher. He was talking to his boosters. He was talking to his alumni. He was talking to his givers. He was trying to get money. That was what he was doing. He was just using us to get where he was trying to get to.”
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Patrick Dowd is a Reporter for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can follow him on Twitter, via Pat_Dowd77
