Is Coach Prime behind CU Boulder football's exodus of players?

Boulder, Colorado - When Deion "Coach Prime" Sanders first arrived at the Colorado Buffaloes football program, he made it clear to expect a mass exodus of players.

When Deion "Coach Prime" Sanders first arrived to Colorado, he dramatically made it clear that there was going to be a mass exodus of players.
When Deion "Coach Prime" Sanders first arrived to Colorado, he dramatically made it clear that there was going to be a mass exodus of players.  © MATTHEW STOCKMAN / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP

In December, Sanders told current members of the Colorado Buffaloes football team to "go ahead and jump in that [transfer] portal," because he was bringing his own "luggage" in the form of student-athletes.

That exodus of players is currently underway. Recently, a handful of Colorado-Boulder players have opened up about the harsh reality of the "Prime era" while slamming Sanders with shocking accusations.

"For the coaches who are trying to recruit me," freshman Zachary Courtney tweeted on Tuesday, "I am sorry but I will not be able to get y’all my film from my practices last season since I am not allowed to have it because the head coach at CU won’t allow it. This is very unlucky and if you have any questions just text me!"

Courtney is one of many former Colorado Buffaloes football players that have already entered the transfer portal.

The wild revelations kept coming, too. Linebacker Kaden Ludwick, one of the 18 CU Boulder players to enter the transfer portal following last Saturday's spring game, backed up Courtney's claim on Twitter by replying: "We all need our film lol."

Adding to the fire, Courtney and other Colorado Buffaloes players told The Athletic about unfair treatment given to the former players compared to the athletes that Sanders "brought on."

Not everyone approves of Deion Sanders' questionable "block" of players film

Super Bowl champion and ESPN NFL analyst Ryan Clark (l) has questioned whether withholding film from players is normal.
Super Bowl champion and ESPN NFL analyst Ryan Clark (l) has questioned whether withholding film from players is normal.  © Collage: Mindy Small & Sean M. Haffey / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP

Courtney told the outlet, "None of the new coaches would talk to the old players and treat us the same as the people they brought in." He added, "The new guys wouldn’t be picked on as much in film. Coaches would tell them to just do better, but if it was an old player, they’d keep going off on what you did wrong and keep yelling about it."

Freshman Travis Gray said he has "no relationship with him at all. I said what’s up to him a few times.

"I’m not sure [if] he knew the names of half the kids he got rid of. He was worried about who he brought in. If you were on the 1-11 team, it seemed like he didn’t really care about us at all. He already said he was going to get rid of 25-30 of us, and that’s exactly what he did," Gray stated.

UConn head coach Jim Mora is not about Deion Sanders and the Colorado Buffaloes football program withholding the film of players that have entered the transfer portal.

When Super Bowl champion and NFL analyst Ryan Clark took to Twitter to question whether withholding film from players was normal, Mora didn't hold back his disgust over the idea.

"Any coach that won’t allow a transfer to access film is operating from a place of complete paranoia. You really believe an opponent can gather info from random clips?" Mora tweeted. "@Realrclark25. Part of the job of a COLLEGE Coach is to advocate for your student-athletes…current and past!"

Like Mora, other college football fans didn't hesitate to share their own feelings about the situation.

College football fans react to the accusations against Coach Prime

one fan tweeted, "99.9 % of coaches will give film and help a kid find a home."

"This can’t be the same Deion, when at Jackson State, who said that he used practice film to evaluate players that he’s looking to bring in !!! You mean he doesn’t want help you to leave Colorado ?? Oh my !!!!" another fan added.

"It’s like if you were unable to put your latest & most relevant work information on your resume when applying for another job. Prime is beyond foul for not giving kids the opportunity to use practice film from a previous coaching regime after pushing them out of the program." someone else wrote.

The latest drama surrounding the Colorado Buffaloes football program is seemingly just the start of what many expect to be a wild offseason!

Cover photo: Collage: MATTHEW STOCKMAN / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / GETTY IMAGES VIA AFP

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