ATLANTA — Deion Sanders and Jackson State are in Atlanta enjoying the glow of landing top recruit Travis Hunter this week ahead of Saturday's Celebration Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Sanders, the Jackson State coach, talked with news organizations in press conference on Friday afternoon ahead of the bowl game.
His Tigers, champions of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC), are up against South Carolina State. The Bulldogs ran through Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) with a 5-0 conference record to earn their spot in the game. SC State coach Oliver "Buddy" Pough also spoke Friday at noon in a press conference.
The champions of the two HBCU athletic conferences meet annually in the Celebration Bowl.
The game has taken on extra hype this year after Hunter's surprise decision to join "Coach Prime" - Sanders' nod to his "Prime Time" nickname from his own playing days - at Jackson State. Sanders led the Tigers to an 11-1 record and 8-0 conference record in 2021, but his biggest win might be landing the nation's top recruit in the Collins Hill High School star.
With Hunter teaming up with Sanders -- who enjoyed a sterling NFL and television analyst career before taking the reins at Jackson State last year -- Hunter said he "got one of the lifetime chances to play for one of the greats" as well as make history.
"Historically Black Colleges and Universities have a rich history in football. I want to be part of that history, and more, I want to be part of that future," Hunter wrote in an Instagram post after announcing his decision. "I am making this decision so that I can light the way for others to follow."
Friday, Sanders said he has more in the chamber to build his program.
"You've seen one recruit," he said. "We wanted him to get all the shine, all the glory and every darn thing he deserves. Don't think we don't have nothing else in the chamber. We're just waiting. We are filling the needs that we have."
Many are saying the move could change the landscape of recruitment. Sanders said he wants to see change take place and it's one of the reasons why he wanted to come to JSU and coach at an HBCU.
Pough was asked during the news conference about the attention the game and the players are getting. However, he claims the attention they get from this particular game isn't too much different.
"It's something that we sort of preach as a program that our guys kind of have to sort of get use to as they go through life that way. But at the same time, as I said earlier, it’s not the individual and the attention they get," he said. "It’s about what you do and how you go about doing it in the end.”
Pough is focused on the game and said he has a tough resilient bunch who was "beat up" early in their schedule.
“We were down for a long time fighting our way back trying to get to .500,” he said. Their efforts landed them in the Celebration Bowl.
SC State players Corey Fields and Decobie Durant recognized they have been underdogs this year. However, they aren't letting the attention JSU is receiving bother them.
"We play with a chip on our shoulders all year, we're overlooked, especially coming into this game, " Durant said. "All the hype is for Jackson State, it's going to be a showdown."