Georgia Tech's Brent Key Doesn't Hold Back on Deion Sanders

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets coach Brent Key has been leading the program since 2023, but he might be experiencing a first in his Georgia Tech career with the Colorado Buffaloes coming into town for Thursday's season opener.

Brent Key on Deion Sanders Returning to Atlanta

During his weekly press conference, Key referenced the impact that Colorado coach Deion Sanders had on the city of Atlanta, the home of the Yellow Jackets, during "Prime Time's" days with the Atlanta Falcons as well as the Atlanta Braves. With the Buffaloes coming to Atlanta to open the 2026 regular season, Key explained the anticipation that he's felt for the upcoming matchup:

colorado buffaloes georgia tech yellow jackets brent key deion sanders atlanta homecoming return big 12 acc prime time — Deion Sanders, Atlanta Falcons. 231675 Jpg S Fbn Usa Dist Of Columbia | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

"Not far fetched, it's the truth. I mean, Deion's the biggest sports celebrity probably to ever play in the town, in the city of Atlanta. He's coming back home. I've equated it kind of like, 'Hey, say Tom Brady's coaching North Carolina and he'll play BC (Boston College).' Right? I mean, it's a big deal," said Key.

"And, especially for somebody that grew up in the 80s, I mean, golly. He was the the top of the top, the premier guy that that, you know, everybody wanted to be when they were growing up. Baseball, football, just just the persona that was created around him. So all those things are big."

Sanders made history as the only athlete to ever play in the World Series and win a Super Bowl, winning a championship with the Braves and winning rings with the San Francisco 49ers and the Dallas Cowboys.

Key also talked about the current conditions at Colorado's program with offensive coordinator Brennan Marion and defensive coordinator Chris Marve hired over the offseason and how that intrigue adds to the anticipation of Georgia Tech's matchup with the Buffaloes.

"Two new coordinators that have had success. They've had success. They've had success against us, right? You know, defense coordinator's had success against us. They've got good players, all right? We've both been head coaches the same amount of time at our respective schools. So you put all those things together now, and you create an environment for a really, really big college football game that recruits want to come to. And that's what we want every game here at Bobby Dodd to be," Key continued.

Colorado vs. Georgia Tech in Prime Time

With Colorado and Georgia Tech squaring off on Thursday night in week 1 of the college football season, there will be plenty of eyeballs on the game. The NFL season will have yet to kick off, and fans are eagerly awaiting the return of football.

Under "Coach Prime," Colorado has made a habit of playing on national TV, and Thursday's game against Georgia Tech is no different with the broadcast on ESPN.

"I think anytime you open the season in a game that's an out of conference team, it's a marquee team in the country, you know, it puts eyes on your team. And look, competitors want to compete, right? They want eyes on them. That's the confidence you have to have as a top level college football player, as a top level college coach, right? You won't eyes on you. You want people to see you. You want to play the best opponents. And that's what we have an opportunity to do here in two days," Key said on Tuesday.

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