Sources: Sanders preparing to take Colorado job

Jackson State manager Deion Sanders has been preparing to marque an exit successful bid to instrumentality the caput coaching occupation astatine Colorado, sources told ESPN connected Friday.

With Jackson State connected the cusp of the SWAC rubric crippled Saturday, Sanders and his associates person spent the week making inquiries to some imaginable members of his on-field unit and enactment unit astatine Colorado, pitching them to articulation him successful Boulder, sources said.

A root told ESPN connected Friday nighttime that Sanders' outreach included a telephone to a salient subordinate successful the NCAA transportation portal, encouraging him to not marque a determination due to the fact that Sanders was heading to Colorado and wanted to enlistee him there.

A antithetic root adjacent to a subordinate committed to play astatine Colorado said that earlier this week a existent Jackson State unit subordinate called to cheque successful connected the player's Colorado commitment. He besides asked him for immoderate movie of the subordinate to measure him.

"They weren't precisely hiding anything," said the source. "It seemed similar it was a done deal."

Internally astatine Colorado, according to sources, the enactment unit has been seen preparing worldly for Sanders' hire. There's a wide anticipation successful the gathering that Sanders volition get determination this weekend, though the unit has not been told formally.

"They're not doing a large occupation of hiding this," said a unit source. "If helium backs retired of this deal, it would beryllium a immense occupation for Colorado."

Sanders has said publically that he's been offered the Colorado job. All signs constituent to him accepting it successful the adjacent 48 hours, arsenic each the different candidates Colorado has engaged person been stalled aft interviewing weeks ago.

Sanders has gone 26-5 his past 3 seasons astatine Jackson State and 22-2 the past 2 years. Jackson State (11-0) plays Southern (7-4), a squad it bushed 35-0 earlier successful the year, for the SWAC rubric Saturday. Sanders is expected to pass his squad that he's leaving soon aft the game.

Sanders is successful conscionable his 3rd play arsenic a assemblage shot coach.

Colorado fired Karl Dorrell successful October aft an 0-5 commencement and an 8-15 grounds wide successful 3 years arsenic coach. Mike Sanford filled successful arsenic interim and went 1-6 to adjacent the year.

Sanders is an iconic American jock and a subordinate of some the Pro Football and College Football Hall of Fame. He played successful the NFL for 14 seasons, won 2 Super Bowls and besides played for 5 antithetic Major League Baseball teams from 1989 done 2001.