When it comes to Deion Sanders, he’s very particular about his image. Every aspect of his “Coach Prime” persona is meticulously crafted to protect his personal brand. And even his family knows that. So it is only expected that whenever false narratives start harming the Colorado head coach’s reputation, his children step in immediately to protect him.

“When the hate don’t work, they start telling lies,” Deion Sanders Jr. wrote on X on June 8 in response to a fabricated viral quote.

The tweet Sanders’ oldest son responded to and shared reportedly came from an individual named Shane Tuttle. Referring to himself as an “NCAA Professional Podcaster, this is what his tweet read: “Deion Sanders has implemented a new policy prohibiting Colorado freshmen from earning NIL money until their sophomore year.”

Deion Sanders has never been against NIL for players during the Buffs’ freshman seasons. Moreover, Coach Prime has used NIL opportunities to attract high-profile true freshmen. For instance, the school’s partnership with Taco Bell featured 18-year-old Julian Lewis, giving him an immediate opportunity to build financial momentum.

However, the Buffs’ head coach believes the current NIL system lacks sustainability, leading him to prefer an NFL-structured system. Deion Sanders advised his players not to care about “getting a bag” over pro development. He also implemented an NFL-style fine system for being late and missing practice entirely to hold his Colorado players accountable. But there’s no official record of the public statement where Coach Prime stated anything about a freshman NIL ban.

Interestingly, the whole fiasco comes just days after Sanders had actually talked about NIL, and didn’t seem particularly impressed with how things are going.

“I do believe that college athletes should be compensated for their name, image and likeness,” Sanders told Front Office Sports’ Baker Machado. “But it’s not about name, image and likeness right now. It’s just about pay-per-view. If it is what it is, then let’s let it. Say what it is.”

Now, whether you take it as just criticism or constructive criticism is up to you. Because Coach Prime always remains candid in responding to criticism.

Deion Sanders doesn’t care about hate

Earlier this year, after Deion Sanders’ youngest son, Shedeur, broke the all-time NFL rookie licensing record, critics flooded social media to claim that the family cared about money over sports. Shedeur earned $17.7 million, breaking Tom Brady’s record. While it’s an achievement for the 24-year-old, being the son of Coach Prime means every step he takes triggers online drama.

However, Deion Sanders was quick to shut down criticism, with Deion Jr. filming and dropping an exclusive video of his father addressing those haters through Well Off Media on Tuesday.

“All the scrutiny, the hate, & the drama that surrounds the Sanders family, we don’t care,” the 58-year-old said. “I’m so proud of my kids. I just had a kid who made the most money in the history of the NFL in sales. That won’t even include jerseys. Y’all don’t know that. That was another deal.”

But that won’t stop critics from targeting the Sanders family for their flashy lifestyle. On the flip side, Deion Jr.’s Well Off Media serves as a tool to help manage the online narrative surrounding his father.