Deion Sanders won his head coach debut on Sunday when Jackson State defeated NAIA-level Edward Waters 53-0. But the game was quickly overshadowed by confusion over whether Sanders was robbed during the game, and it appears he was not immediately convinced otherwise immediately after the game.
Sanders told reporters during his press conference that someone he believes stole his belongings from the coach’s office during the game claims that his credit card, wallet, watches and phone were all taken. He uses the incident to illustrate how “when I talk about quality and raising standards, it applies to everyone, not just the people on the field, not just the coaches, not just the teachers, not just the faculty. But that’s all. Safety and all. “
The news of the allegation spread quickly and Sanders claims it is the second time he has been robbed since taking up the FCS position in Jackson, Mississippi. However, within an hour after Sanders’ long-running battle over the matter, Jackson State officials said said Ross Dellenger of Sports Illustrated that his possessions were not stolen and were only misplaced after being moved for safekeeping. Noah Newman of WJTV in Jackson report that all of Sanders’ things were found in his locker / office.
The bizarre incident kicked off the start of the numbers that would be a fascinating tenure for Sanders at the HBCU competing in the SWAC of the FCS level. The FCS season has moved to spring this year amid the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Tigers are expected to play a seven-game slate in the regular season. Sanders, who drew attention to the Jackson State program with his status as a former NFL and MLB superstar, will quickly have to put Sunday’s misunderstanding behind him. The Tigers will face state rival Mississippi Valley State on Saturday, and it should be a much tougher game than Sunday’s game against an enemy from the lowest tier.
“How do you think it feels?” Sanders said before the incident was resolved. “Coming back to just tearful because the guys offered me the game ball. One of the best moments I’ve ever had emotionally in my professional sports career. Then you go to your locker room and your coaching office … and you see that you do not even have a phone to call your mom, to call your girlfriend, to call your kids because it was stolen. ‘
Sanders finally said ‘let’s flush it’ and started talking about the game. But before that, he made it clear that “we’re going to find out who did it.” Iff Sanders wanted to get more attention at the start of his rebuilding job in Jackson State, Sunday’s bizarre merger after the game was definitely a few, and he left the incident with some mystery by posting the following on Twitter on Sunday night.