It’s Prime Time for fishin’ – Deion Sanders shares Travis Hunter’s passion for bassin’

Bass anglers rejoiced when Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter hit the cover of Sports Illustrated holding not a football, but two big bass. But Hunter isn’t the only headline-making Colorado Buffalo who loves settin’ hooks and rippin’ lips – Coach Prime loves bassin’ too.

When Coach Prime visited the Bassmaster Classic – the Super Bowl of Bass Fishing – he was neither playmaker nor play-caller. But in talking with Mark Zona and Tommy Sanders, it was clear he is a true fan -- of both the Classic and its longtime broadcast duo | Bassmaster.com

Below the bling, behind the bluster, Deion Sanders, Coach Prime, is at heart still a kid casting a line, hoping for a bite, a wannabe Bassmaster. Same as you and I.

“My stepfather taught me with a cane pole,” Coach Prime reminisces as a guest on Mark Zona and Tommy Sanders’ Bassmaster Classic livestream. “We used to go in these little lakes and these little creeks in Fort Myers, Florida, to catch the bluegill, sheephead, and whatever would bite.”

Humble origins. Caring mentor. Fascination with water and what lies below. Coach Prime, it seems, is just like you and me.

“I remember seeing a wonderful father and son … fishing, and I thought to myself, hmm,” Coach Prime continues, recalling a foundational memory from his youth. “Most people [would be] thinking, ‘Man, if he had a boat, he could do some wonderful things. … If he had the rods and reels and lures, not a cane pole.’

“You know what I was thinking? – If I had the whole darn lake, I could do whatever I wanted to!’”

And, there it is … 

Prime gotta Prime. 

Neon Deion, it’s no surprise, has always dreamed bigger than big. And big-time he became. No need to list his accomplishments as a player and coach. You know them as well as I do. Not needing an introduction is essential to being Prime.

But when Coach Prime visits the Bassmaster Classic – the Super Bowl of Bass Fishing – he’s neither playmaker nor play-caller. And talking with Zona and Tommy Sanders, it’s clear he’s a fan, just like you and me, of both the Classic and its longtime broadcast duo. (He’s watched enough Classic coverage over the years to tease Zona and Tommy Sanders for occasionally impersonating golf announcers, comically dropping their voices “down low.”) 

In less than a minute of banter with Zona and Tommy Sanders, it’s clear Coach Prime shares a bond with them that only fellow bass fanatics can understand. Among those who would get it is 2025 Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter, who played for Coach Prime at both Jackson State and Colorado; who is pictured this week grinning on the cover of Sports Illustrated, holding up two big largemouth bass. Hunter’s 2021 decision to decommit from Florida State to play for Prime was partly because “the two had bonded over a love of bass fishing,” writes Pat Forde in his pre-2025-NFL-draft SI cover story about Hunter.

In this screen-grab from a video on Travis Hunter's YouTube channel, Coach Prime is fishing on his private lake against Hunter in a head-to-head challenge (you can see the bass-catch numbers in the upper corners). Hunter played for Coach Prime at both Jackson State and Colorado. When Prime was recruiting Hunter to Jackson State, they "bonded over a love of bass fishing," writes Pat Forde in his pre-2025 NFL Draft SI cover story about Hunter. | https://youtu.be/EdkZWr4e67o?si=twxZmWDltFmx_fmK

After cutting up a bit with Zona and Tommy Sanders at the Bassmaster LIVE Broadcast desk, Coach Prime gets real. As he professes a palpably authentic passion for bassin, a glimpse back through time at cane-pole-fishin’ little Deion is visible through his on-brand bravado. A contemplative, philosophical Coach Prime shines through.

“All I gotta do is go to the lake and I'm straight,” he says, with absolute conviction. “And I love it.”

“Generations together. Together!” Coach Prime continues. “Forget ethnicities. Forget social classes. Forget all that. It just brings us together. It's the peace.”

Preaching to the choir of a Bassmaster Classic audience, Coach Prime sounds like Pastor Prime.

“The Bible talks about the peace that surpasses all understanding,” he says. “Fishing is so peaceful to me. When I'm going through it, all I got to do is go to the lake and I'm straight.”

When he’s “going through it” … 

For 40 years, Deion Sanders has lived — and thrived — in the high-stakes crucible of high-performance, big-money sports. In this, Deion Sanders is nothing like you and me. 

But there’s no success without stress. No wins without losses. No swings without misses. No receptions without drops. No runs for gains without runs for losses. Even for Coach Prime. Case in point, CU finished a disappointing 4-8 in 2023 after sprinting to a 3-0 start.

So yeah, Deion Sanders has “gone through it.” And while his “it” differs a bit from yours or mine, whatever it is, he got through it, came out the other side. And fishing helped him. Took his mind off other things. Challenged him. Entertained him. Rewarded him. Broke his heart. Made him curse. Made him smile.

In this, Deion Sanders is just like you and me.

“Every piece of property I've ever owned as a professional … I put a lake on it,” Coach Prime tells Zona and Tommy Sanders.

Private lakes …

OK, Deion Sanders is nothing like you and me.

“I put a lake on it so I can enjoy that moment my stepfather tried to give me,” Coach Prime continues.

Reconnecting with lost youth through a fishing line ...

OK, Deion Sanders is just like you and me.

At the Bassmaster Classic broadcast desk, Tommy Sanders is feeling it – that connection only bass anglers understand. It’s almost spiritual. What he says next sounds like he’s starting a sermon:

“It's Sunday morning, you go to any fishing dock in America …”

Coach Prime cuts in, flashing his trademark smile. A Cheshire Cat in mirrored shades.

“Forget the dock, I like home games!” he protests, laughing. (Public docks ain’t Prime.) “I like my crib. I like [the lake at] my house.”

And, there it is …

Prime gotta Prime.

Would we want him any other way? What would be the fun in that?

There’s an old saying, something about anyone can catch a bass, man, woman or child; that bass don’t know who’s fishin’ for ‘em, don’t care.

But a bass caught by Coach Prime? I betcha he knows who hooked and released him. And I betcha he brags to the other bass if ever he throws Coach’s lure and gets away. Betcha he keeps score. Betcha Coach does too. 

I like to imagine there’s a scoreboard on the shore of Coach Prime’s private lake. And considering the competitor he is, I imagine the home team’s winning. 

Then again, how could he lose? He’s bassin’. He’s on the water. Whether they’re bitin’ or not, there’s a peace there that surpasses all understanding.