You couldn’t really blame Deion Sanders Jr. for being on edge heading into Colorado’s spring game. The Sanders’ name has always been polarizing. Loud, flashy, unfiltered, and great. That combo draws eyes, but it also draws heat. So when Shedeur Sanders was set to have his jersey retired at Folsom Field, Bucky figured the crowd might turn hostile. 

‘They gonna boo him,’ Deion Sanders Jr. thought. And while that’s a wild thought, it wasn’t out of the question. But here’s the thing. The boos never came. No hate, no hostility. Just over 20,000 fans showing up for Black and Gold Day, ready to send off their two biggest names to the 2025 NFL Draft. 

Deion Sanders Jr. misread the moment, and he later acknowledged the Sanders’ greatness in his Instagram post on April 20. Posting a carousel of behind-the-scenes shots from the day, including shots with Shedeur Sanders and Deion Sanders, he captioned—“Sanders name will be legendary for generations to come – ‘I have told you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe.’ John 14:29.” Whether it’s a nod to Shedeur or the family as a whole, the message is clear—Legacy, faith, and a little bit of ‘I told you so.’

Well, it’s not just the last name. Shedeur Sanders is his own force—he completed 74% of his passes to set a program record with 4,134 passing yards and 37 TDs. He led Colorado to their first winning season since 2016 with a 9-4 record and earned the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year title. A 7,300+ yards over two seasons in Boulder? Solid! And let’s not forget, CU is not the only program he transformed. At Jackson State, he won the Jerry Rice Award and led his team to two straight SWAC Championships. 

So when Colorado decided to retire Shedeur Sanders’ jersey, alongside Travis Hunter’s, it ruffled some feathers. Words like “too soon” and “what about the greats before him” floated in the air. But as Deion Sanders put it, “This is the first time I ever seen it sore. I don’t know if you know it, but I think every jersey I darn played in is retired. So I’m pretty familiar with this. It’s never been sore.”

The Buffs HC also added—“We’re talking about Shedeur. We ain’t talking about nobody else. If his last name wasn’t Sanders, we wouldn’t have this discussion.” And that’s exactly the point. 

Shilo Sanders’ bet against Deion Sanders Jr. on Shedeur Sanders 

Shilo Sanders wasn’t buying the hate hype. He even bet against Deion Sanders Jr., telling Well Off Media fam, “Hey yo, me and Bucky got a bet—Bucky said, ‘They gonna’ boo him.’ I said, ‘They not gonna’ boo. We don’t get haters in real life.’ Bro, they not gonna’ boo. Bucky think about CU.” And yeah, Shilo won the bet, and while it wasn’t a parade, the vibe was respect. And in this game, that’s everything. 

“Somebody’s always going to have something to say,” Deion Sanders said unapologetically. “But the way we are right now, we are a now generation… Those guys deserve what they deserve right now. So I’m proud of them.” Even Shedeur Sanders remains unfazed by the harsh critics’ takes. Don’t forget what he said in Indianapolis at the Combine….

“You think I’m worried about what critics say, what people gotta say? You know who my dad is? They hated on him, too. We like adversity. We like everything that comes with the name. That’s why we are who we are.” As Deion Sanders told Fox Sports analyst RJ Young, “The Sanders, we’ve been around for a long time. It’s like they’re tired of us… You had to deal with me… Now you have to deal with my kids.” And whether or not critics like it, the Sanders era isn’t ending—it‘s multiplying.