The first day of practice for the Buffaloes didn’t go as planned. Deion Sanders asked for only one hour of full-speed effort to get the new season’s training kicked off. But lackluster performances from each position group caused the Pro Football Hall of Famer to cut things off early.
As the team began day two, they knew they needed to step up if they wanted to even sniff mediocrity. The tone was set early, with Coach Prime kicking out a quarterback right at the beginning of the team meeting for his phone going off.
After watching film Coach Prime keeps it real with his guys. He asks the team, “Fellas, what are you saying to yourself right now?” A player responds with, “I’m better than I was yesterday.” Plain and simple.
Coach Prime harps on that, explaining how you can say you are better all you want, but your actions need to speak louder than your words.
He preached, “You’ve gotta prove it to your teammates, your coaches, and yourself that you’re better than that… It ain’t about me dawg, I want you to be great… When I’m on you, when they (coaching staff) are on you, it ain’t about us. We want you to get what you prayed for. What you dreamt of, what you told your momma you were going to do. What you told your siblings you were gonna get… Show us all today on that field that you are better than that.”
It seemed like Coach Prime was bringing back the Jackson State moniker: I Believe.
The Warmups for Day Two Go Smoother Than the Day Before
After hearing what their head coach had to say, the Buffaloes went out on that field looking to execute. The speech from Prime clearly heightened the energy and morale of the squad. Before the official practice was underway, Sanders had more words of encouragement for his guys.
“You’re better than that. You know what’s on the script today. Don’t save it, don’t hold it back. Give it all you’ve got… Don’t let your mind tell you who you aren’t. You tell your mind you can. You can, and you will. Don’t let your mind talk you out of greatness… Let’s have a great practice today fellas. I believe in every one of yall.”
