Former Colorado Buffaloes college football player Xavier Smith made headlines in April 2024 after slamming his former coach, Deion Sanders, in an interview with The Athletic.
Sanders, a former NFL star turned college football coach, has been under fire since Smith’s comments came to light.
Sanders, a Fort Myers, Florida native, enjoyed a successful career in the NFL playing for teams such as the Atlanta Falcons, San Francisco 49ers, and Dallas Cowboys. He also had a stint in Major League Baseball with teams like the New York Yankees and Atlanta Braves before venturing into coaching. Sanders took on the role of head coach at the University of Colorado Boulder, where he currently remains.
On the other hand, Xavier Smith, originally from Atlanta, Georgia, was a talented football player who excelled at Langston Hughes High School. He caught the attention of multiple universities and eventually committed to play for the Colorado Buffaloes under Sanders’ coaching. However, Smith later transferred to Austin Peay State University in 2023 and then to the University of Texas at El Paso in 2024.
In his interview with The Athletic, Smith criticized Sanders for not making an effort to get to know him personally and for damaging the confidence and self-belief of his players. Smith mentioned feeling emotional and upset by Sanders’ coaching methods, which ultimately led to his decision to transfer from the Buffaloes.
Following Smith’s comments, Sanders’ son Shedeur, who also played under his father’s coaching, defended Sanders by brushing off Smith’s remarks as insignificant. Shedeur took to social media to express his lack of recollection of Smith and dismissed his opinions by suggesting that Smith was not a noteworthy player.
The feud between Smith and Sanders has brought the spotlight on the dynamics of player-coach relationships in college football and has sparked discussions about the impact of coaching styles on players’ mental and emotional well-being.
