Deion Sanders Praises Oklahoma State’s Eric Morris, Mike Gundy Ahead of Colorado Game

Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders had great things to say about Oklahoma State head coaches, current and former, during his press conference on Tuesday.

Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Deion Sanders and his Colorado Buffaloes have lost their last four games going into their game with Oklahoma State on Saturday.

It’s homecoming for the Cowboys (4-2, 2-1 in Big 12) and they’ll be looking to bounce back after losing to Houston, 35-32, last weekend. The fourth-year head coach in Boulder has his work cut out for him.

But, during his press conference on Tuesday, he said that he will “root for all the guys in the Big 12 — except when they play against us.”

But he had great things to say about current head coach Eric Morris and his predecessor, Mike Gundy, in comments captured and posted by the O’Colly’s Will Thorogood, among other outlets.

Deion Sanders on Oklahoma State Coaches

Oklahoma State Cowboys head coach Eric Morris. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Sanders doled out heavy praise for Morris, who is in his first year in the job and turned over nearly the entire roster upon his arrival in Stillwater, much the same way that Sanders did when he arrived at Colorado before the 2023 season.

Sanders noticed that, along with the quarterback, Drew Mestemaker.

“Coach Morris has been doing a great job coming from my old stomping grounds in North Texas, has been phenomenal, brought a ton of guys over with him, cleaned out the house a little bit,” Sanders said. “He got really what he wanted, the right guys in, doing a phenomenal job. He’s got a quarterback [Drew Mestemaker] that can flat out spin it. The defense, they’re coming, they’re coming. They’re going to get there. But I’m proud of him, I really am.”

Mestemaker will be a problem for Colorado’s defense and he knows it. The redshirt sophomore has thrown for at least 300 yards in each of his last five games.

Morris took over for Gundy, who led the program for more than two decades before he was fired three games into last season. His last two seasons with Oklahoma State were forgettable. But he built a consistent winner at Oklahoma State, winning 170 games, claiming a Big 12 title and reaching the Big 12 Championship game twice in three years, the last of which was in 2023.

“[Eric Morris] is replacing a darned legend in Mike Gundy, oh my God,” Sanders said.

He then delivered some praise for Gundy — and an invitation.

“If this gets back to Coach Gundy, love you, appreciate you,” he said. “It’s not ‘were.’ You are still the man and any time you wanna fish let me know. He’s unbelievable, the run that he had and the man that he is.”

Gundy recently appeared as a studio analyst on TNT for a Big 12 game and expressed his gratitude for OSU and his time there as a player, an assistant coach and a head coach. He even wore an orange tie for his appearance.