Deion Sanders rebukes reporter for calling him by 1st name
Jackson State head coach Deion Sanders caused a stir at SWAC media day on Tuesday when he took issue with a reporter calling him by his first name.
"You don't call (Alabama head coach) Nick Saban, 'Nick.' Don't call me Deion," Sanders told Nick Suss of the Clarion Ledger, according to fellow Clarion Ledger reporter Langston Newsome.
He added: "If you call (Saban) Nick, you'll get cussed out on the spot, so don't do that to me. Treat me like Nick."
It was widely reported that Sanders left the press conference early because of the incident, but he refuted that version of events:
Never walked out of media day. I prolonged my time to answer another question & the person thought it was cute to address me the way he did so I dropped the call & went to the next outlet. Please don’t allow a fool to fool u because then nobody would truly know who the fool is. https://t.co/csbTRNgJvd
— COACH PRIME (@DeionSanders) July 20, 2021
The former NFL cornerback led Jackson State to a 4-3 record in 2020, his first season as a college football head coach.
Suss said afterward he wasn't treating Sanders differently than other coaches he's previously covered, including Saban and Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin.
"When I interview people, I call them by their first name," Suss said. "Whether it's someone I've been working with for years or someone I'm talking to for the first time."
Some on social media also pointed out that reporters have often called Saban - the most successful head coach in college football history - by his first name during press conferences.
JSU coach Deion Sanders walks out of SWAC media day after being addressed as Deion.
— Chase Goodbread (@ChaseGoodbread) July 20, 2021
"If you call Nick (Saban), Nick, you'll get cussed out on the spot, so don't do that to me"
I covered Saban for 6 years. He was called Nick many times. He never said a wordhttps://t.co/nwrRIoRzTx
Sanders earned the nickname "Prime Time" during his Hall of Fame career and goes by "Coach Prime" on Twitter and Instagram.