 Welcome to Will Mega TV. I'm your host, Will Mega. Okay, okay, okay. All right, all right, all right. Today on Will Mega TV, we're going to discuss Deion Sanders and his decision to leave one university and head to the next. Yes, Deion Sanders has decided to leave HBCU Jackson State and he's headed for Colorado. Colorado University and he's making some noise, but not everyone is on the same page and or in agreement with Deion Sanders. Let me first say that as a graduate of a historically black college and university, that's what HBCU means for those who may not know. I'm a graduate of Lincoln University, formerly Ashman Institute, founded in 1854 in Pennsylvania. Shout out to LU, you know, and shout out to my fellow Lions out there. And so today I bring commentary from the perspective of someone who's both been a student in a PWI predominantly white institution and a historically black college and university. Because our perspective is just a little different. It's different because in order to look through the lens of those who are graduates, alumni of Jackson State, students of Jackson State, faculty and staff of Jackson State, the members of SWAC, that's the Southwestern Athletic Conference and the HBC community at large, we have a different perspective than those who may have not attended college or those who have gone to predominantly white institutions. And so that's the angle from which I'm giving my commentary today. Deion Sanders, let's give some backdrop as to who he is and why I believe he actually made the right decision to move on to Colorado. Today's coach in colleges and universities are under different circumstances than colleges and university coaches five years ago, 10 years ago, 15, 20, 30, 40 years ago. Today's coach is not going to be like the late and great Grambling Universities Eddie Robinson who hitched himself to the university and became the heart and soul in the face and voice in spirit of the university. Shout out to his son who's currently the head coach at Grambling University Eddie Junior, Eddie Robinson Junior, the one who told Deion that you're not SWAC. It was a different time then. It was a different era then. The rules were different in colleges and universities at the time and the political backdrop was different during Eddie Robinson's time. So I know there's a lot of black people saying, oh man, I can't believe Deion sold them out. He left after three years. How could he do that? He should have at least stayed five or maybe six or he should have stayed committed to the HBCU community. How could he leave? So I think it's important that we start with how did he get there and why? This is one of the things that most people have not even considered. One, Deion already said, I don't need the money. I'm not doing this for the money. He said quote unquote, I don't chase a bag. The bag chases me. And as braggadocious as Deion Sanders has been, none of us could ever say that he has not backed up his braggadocious Muhammad Ali words. We can't say that about Neon. Deion. What we can say is when he talked that talk, he has walked that walk. He is a very unique individual athlete who by the way has always shared with us that he moves on God's time. That he moved there on God's time in his decisions in his athletic career as a professional athlete, as a collegiate athlete, and now as a coach that he's been moving on God's time. Let's just take a look at Deion Sanders. Deion Sanders, I gotta go to the fact sheet. I like, listen, the fact sheet. Let's just go to the fact sheet. Here's my fact sheet. Made a few notes here. The fact sheet, because I don't want to miss this. Deion Sanders, two Super Bowls, a world series. As I said, two Super Bowls in a world series. Yes, for those of you who don't know, Deion Sanders was a professional athlete at the same time in two sports in the National Football League and Major League Baseball. That's unheard of the only other person we've seen do such a thing. And there's only been one other with Bo Jackson, but not to the level of Deion Sanders. Unfortunately, because Bo got hurt, but I think they were pretty much on the same level. Two Super Bowls, a world series. College Football Hall of Fame. NFL Hall of Fame. College Football Championships, two. He's led his team to a 27-5 record since he was at Jackson State. He was able to recruit some of the best at football players out of high school. He's had the gift of both gap and the ability to relate with young black men and players. To guide them right and see that they would get an education. But folks, forget that before coming to coach on a collegiate level, Deion was coaching his kids in high school. And Deion had two of his sons play for him at Jackson State. Yes, he was coaching his sons. One of which was a blue college chipper quarterback. One of which all the top schools wanted. One of which, his son Shador, I think his name is Shador, is still playing. And I'm sure he's going to jump into the portal and transfer to Colorado. And so that's one of the main differences now. Back in the day, college athletes weren't able to hop, skip and jump from school to school. But now that you can, many of the players that Deion recruited would be available. I'm sure he made those contractual agreements that he would have say on who he was recruiting. And that's largely why they came after him because of his strong ability to recruit. There's some out there saying, and I hear, oh man, you know, it's his responsibility to be a father figure. He was being a father figure. Both of his sons went to the school, went to Jackson State with him. Oh, he should be a father figure to all those young black men there. As if he's not going to be a father figure to people when Colorado were on the team. 70% across the board, 70% across the board, 70% across the board in college football are black players. And let me say this to you. Yes, it's the responsibility for a coach to be a stand-up guy. It's the responsibility for a coach to mentor his players. It's the number one responsibility of a coach to see that your players are student athletes. That they're doing the best that they can in the classroom and the best that they can in what they were brought there for with their scholarships as athletes. To be the best student athletes that they can be. But I don't want to hear this father figure nonsense from the peanut gallery anymore. You know who needs to be father figures? Fathers. Why in the black community, we always need someone from the outside to come be a father to our children. The person who needs to be the father figure is the person who figured out how to father and give birth to the child. I don't want to hear, oh well you know what the system is doing to bullshit. I call bullshit. Excuse my language. I don't normally use profanity on my show. But I'm calling BS and here's why. The system didn't pull down your pants to reproduce. The system didn't pull off your drawers to appear the father figure. What I would prefer to hear is this. That black men who father children have a responsibility to be fathers to their children from the time that the woman conceives until your job is done. And let me tell you as a black father, your job's never done. The aspects of your job may change, but your job will never be done. You're always going to be paying it forward. You're always going to be setting the example of manhood. But the number one responsibility of fathers are the people who actually father the children. No more excuses. No more excuses. No more the system needs to take care of my child. No more, oh well so and so went to jail. Stop going to damn jail. Stop committing crimes. No more, well the system, if you haven't figured out by now that we live in a racist society where things aren't always going to go in your favor. When you're behind the eight ball, when societal injustices exist, then you need to figure it out because guess what? That's not an excuse. No more excuses to be a father to your child black man. None. I don't want to hear. So do away with this responsibility of Deion Sanders to be a father figure. And let me ask you, if that's what you really think, what are you saying about the coaches coming after him? Is that black man incapable of being a positive role model to those players? All the other black coaches in the SWAC and at HBCU's incapable of being positive role models to their players? The whole country in sports love and loved Eddie Robinson for being just that. And again, I don't want to hear, well, Deion, see, you know, he should have stayed because, you know, since he did this, he set me example for the other NFL players wrong. He wasn't the first to do that. See, someone set an example for him. His name was Doug Williams, a graduate of an HBCU who came from under the tullage of Eddie Robinson, got drafted into the NFL for the Buccaneers, went on to play for Washington, won a Super Bowl, the first black quarterback to win a Super Bowl. And after he retired, he decided to go coach. We're at an HBCU at Grambling. And what did he do in the SWAC? He won the SWAC Championship. So Deion wasn't the first. Deion was one of many to come. Deion leaving is not the only NFL player coaching in the SWAC. Philadelphia's own Eddie George, great running back. You know Eddie George to play for the Titans? Eddie George is the head coach right now for Tennessee State, an HBCU. So Eddie George can still get busy. And guess what? I think this actually sets up the great precedent of creating a network of a Deion Sanders who has shed so much light on HBCU athletics. In this case football, pushing ESPN to make sure they cover games. I hope and pray that he makes sure that he's sure to schedule some games for Colorado to play an HBCU team. Oh it would be. Could you play? Could you see Colorado playing Grambling after that beef Deion had? And it's still also about bringing money. So when you have a big school and they play a smaller school, guess what they do? They agree to cut that gate. That gate is, that's major. So if you have a school like a Jackson State go play against a Penn State where there are 100,000 fans in the seats. Oh that's a nice take. That's a nice take for a Jackson State to be able to come back home. Deion was putting people in the seats not just as a result of his celebrity but as a result of his productivity. The man was winning. I didn't hear you say why getting Jackson State off from the back. But guess what? He was more giving than that. He didn't even want the bag from Jackson State. What they're not talking about is the fact that he was being paid $300,000 a year but every year he gave them back $150,000. Because he said I'm not in it for the money. I want to help the program and shed some light on to HBCUs and their athletics. So he gave back $150,000 a year and he made sure that they got exposure. He locked in that under armor contract. So you start seeing a player styling and profiling and having the best of swag in the swag, right? So you have to look at this Deion Sanders move as more than just something that is selfish to me. Did you consider the fact that he was putting him in his family at risk? Nobody talked about the fact. As soon as he got there while they were playing, people broke into his office stole all his stuff. Just this past week. Just this past week. Do you know a dead body of a, I believe it was a student, was found in a trunk on campus? His children are there too. Those rich boys. Yeah. And not that his children are any better but my point is that he still exposed them to that. What he didn't have to is my point. He's well connected. He didn't have to. So these are some of the things I think we should take into consideration. I also think we should really understand that in today's college athletics where some of the best players can now receive contracts for their likeness in their image, the game is changed when today's college athletes can enter into the portal at any time and transfer. It's not like yesterday year. It's not like back in the day where let's say a black coach like John Thompson from Georgetown University would get a long term contract, invest in his players and make sure that they would graduate. That was part of their plan to John Thompson's and the John Cheneys because players couldn't just up and running transfer. So players stayed longer. It's the coaches stayed longer, but that's not the game today. Folks can go. They're moving and grooving all day long. All day long, players are looking for their best opportunity to highlight their skills. And the same thing is true for the coach. As a matter of fact, Dion mentioned. He says that in the coaching game, he told his players either you're moving on to greater opportunities for their looking to move you out. They're not too many folks who are sticking around in coaching. So it's productivity or bye bye. And so this opportunity, in my opinion, gives Dion now the network of having been able to even look at the entire swag, right? And see opportunities for players to move up because he knows the talent skill, giving these players a greater opportunity. This is what you don't understand. I think some people don't understand. Listen, when it comes to professional athletes, if you have the talent, they're going to find you. You're not hitting anymore. We live in a communication age where folks can at a moment share all your fill. They can show you running at 4-4. So if you can run a 4-4 and lift 3-50, they're going to find you. If you're 6-7, 2-90 with skill and agility, they're going to find you. If you have the ability to see the floor, pat that ball, make threes, you got a shot, they're going to find you. It doesn't make a difference what school you're at. The game is not the same anymore. It's not the same. And so you don't need a Dion Sanders per se to make sure that you were found if you have pro-level talent. Now, will you become a bit more marketable when you get greater exposure? Absolutely. So these are some of the things we have to take into consideration. These are some of the things we need to look at. Dion Sanders is already going on record in support of his assistant head coach. He's already going on record in support of his equipment team, his media team, the documentary team. The things that he put together to record the successes of the program. He's going on record in support of them. He's even went so far to tell his players to please do not jump into that portal. The players who are not those superstar athletes, he said, come Monday, the portal's going to open and people are going to rush. He said, please call me. Sit down with me. I will sit down and meet with all of you on what I think is best for you in your career, your football career, your academic career. Please don't rush and jump into that portal. What is he saying? He knows. He knows, folks, the linemen that he has, that he has just aren't big enough to play linemen in the NFL. He knows. He knows who's running at 4-4 or 4-3 or 4-5. He knows who has the skill set who can throw that ball. He knows. He's telling them, I've seen them. I've recruited you. I've had the conversations with those of you who have that skill and ability. Stay put. I'm going to leave this with you before I go. Many more are coming. Best believe that other black NFL retired players are coming. And a little birdie told me that Ray Lewis is very likely to take the head coaching job at Morehouse. Thank you for tuning in. Until next time, share the love. Love your brother as you love yourself. Peace. This is Bill Mega TV, where we focus on seeking the truth as we highlight and discuss hip hop, history, religion, revolution, politics, relationships, and reality TV. We provide insightful, uncompromisingly direct and honest programs interviewing quality guests from your favorite urban activists, artists, actors, athletes, cultural figures, to your controversial politicians, and unusual suspects. 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