Fatherhood is of special importance to Deion Sanders.
The Colorado coach has regularly lapped praise onto each of his five children, including Buffaloes quarterback Shedeur, defensive back Shiloh, and basketball-playing Shelomi. He's only been in the Centennial State for a year. But his reputation as a family man precedes him. And it's increasingly making an impact on the way his program operates, too.
On Sunday, Sanders announced that he, Colorado's NIL collective 5430 Alliance, and a bank, Elevation Credit Union, partnered with one another to open up bank accounts for eight members of the team's children.
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Colorado-Elevation Credit Union NIL deal, explained
In a video posted to X, the website formerly known as Twitter, Sanders called up each of the eight fathers on the team to sit forward in front of their Buffaloes teammates.
He proceeded to wax lyrical about his players for their willingness to fulfill their responsibilities as fathers while offering their services to Colorado.
Sanders was soon joined by a representative of Elevation Credit Union who revealed that bank accounts were to be opened in each of the eight players' children's names.
"Want y'all to know, ain't like you're in trouble," Sanders said. "You ain't done nothing wrong. Matter of fact, you did something right. And a child is not a mistake. A child is an opportunity to mature you, grow you, advance you, and give you some skills. Y’all know how I am about fathering."
As part of their agreement, Sanders, 5430 Alliance and Elevation Credit Union are putting a starting total of $2,121 in each child's 529 savings account. The number is a nod to Sanders, who wore No. 21 throughout his professional career. Sanders also seemed to have suggested that there's more to come in the future for these kids.
Sanders added, "We gonna go beyond this, okay?"
Earlier in August, Sanders put out a request for a local bank to build "a business relationship" with a few members of the team. It seems Elevation Credit Union answered the call. For the lives of those eight children, that's only a good thing.
Sanders, meanwhile, added yet another highlight to his glimmering collection of them. The 57-year-old already proved himself to be willing to invest in his football team — he donated half of his salary to renovate Jackson State's facilities in 2022.
That's one way to inspire faith and confidence in your troops.