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USC head coach Lincoln Riley was in the same position as Deion Sanders just one year ago, and Riley went 11-3 in his first season in Los Angeles.
Sanders is looking for a similar result in his inaugural season at Colorado, hoping to turn around a program that went 1-11 in 2022.
Head coach Lincoln Riley of the USC Trojans runs onto the field for the spring football game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on April 15, 2023. (Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images)
"Coach Prime" is going about changing the culture at Colorado by flipping the roster, with nearly 50 players leaving the team since his arrival in December and more than 70 in total entering the transfer portal since August, ESPN reported in May.
His roster overhaul has drawn a good amount of attention, including criticism from a few coaches around the country.
But don’t count Riley as one of the coaches upset with Sanders’ roster flip at Colorado. The USC head coach gives Sanders credit for using the rules to his advantage.
"I give them credit," Riley said at Pac-12 Media Days, according to The Denver Gazette. "We all know what the rules are, we all know what the parameters are. Our job is to build the best teams that we can at the universities that give us the opportunities to do it. No excuses.
University of Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders before the Black and Gold game at Folsom Field April 22, 2023. (Andy Cross/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
"There obviously needed to be a roster transformation there in coach Sanders’ opinion. They’ve gone about it aggressively. Obviously, the success of that, just like ours or anybody else’s, will be determined on the field in the fall (and) as time goes on."
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Sanders has benefited from an NCAA rule that stipulates first-year head coaches may cut players from a roster, though the university must honor the players' scholarships.
Arizona head coach Jedd Fisch also praised Sanders, saying he’s flipped his roster in Tucson as he prepares for his third season as head coach of the Wildcats.
Head coach Jedd Fisch of the Arizona Wildcats speaks with the media at Zouk Nightclub at Resorts World Las Vegas on July 21, 2023. (Louis Grasse/Getty Images)
"He knows what he wants in a football player and he knows what he wants in his roster," Fisch said. "We’ve turned over our roster, too. We have five players that have been there since 2020. I think that’s just part of the deal. How he turned it over and what he chose to do, that’s up to him. I think coach Sanders is great for our league. I’m excited to coach against him (on) Nov. 11."
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Sanders was not present for his first Pac-12 Media Days after undergoing a "routine follow-up procedure" related to the blood clots in his legs.
The Buffaloes open the 2023 college football season at TCU on Sept. 2.