Kenny Dillingham reveals what makes Coach Prime unique: 'He's Deion Sanders'

Deion Sanders has enjoyed fame and success in multiple sports, broadcasting, pop culture and now coaching. He’s been in the limelight for the better part of four decades having been taken in the 1989 NFL Draft and being a star at Florida State before that.

Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham would be born one year after Sanders, now 57, was drafted. The young, successful Sun Devils head coach spoke highly of Sanders during Big 12 Media Days in Frisco, Texas on Wednesday. He pinpointed what makes Coach Prime so special.

“He’s Deion Sanders,” Dillingham said, via Skyler Gerard on X. “He’s unique of course. He’s one of the best people at branding, one of the smartest, in my opinion, coaches in branding a program. He does a phenomenal job developing defensive backs based off his history as one of the best players. He’s done tv.

“I mean, he’s really done it all and to be really good at a lot of things is really hard to do, and he’s been really good at a lot of things. I think what makes him unique is his ability to be really successful in a lot of different areas of this work.”

Sanders’ latest venture has seen him hop into the college coaching industry after spending a few years coaching the high school ranks. Three years at Jackson State was all it took for Sanders to take the head coaching job at Colorado and completely shift how that program is perceived.

The feeling of respect is mutual. Deion Sanders showed his love for the Arizona State head coach during his appearance on stage in Frisco.

“Coach Dillingham is unbelievable,” Sanders said, via Arizona Republic’s Michelle Gardner. “He’s a dear friend. We go way back. I thought we were going to have the opportunity to coach together at one point. … I was just proud of him because we were virgins together coming together in the Big 12, so I’m thankful to be in the Big 12. Thankful he did the doggone thing that was unbelievable, and now he’s soaring.”

Dillingham’s Sun Devils finished 11-3 as Big 12 champions in their first year with the conference. Colorado finished just short of the conference championship game, ending 9-4 overall despite both teams having 7-2 records.

Tiebreakers among four Big 12 programs (ASU, Colorado, Iowa State and BYU) saw the Cyclones advance through with Arizona State for a shot at the College Football Playoff. The Sun Devils won, earning a first-round bye into the CFP. Coach Prime said that he was happy for Dillingham and his program for how they represented the conference.

The next time we will see these two head coaches together will be when Arizona State travels to Boulder for a late November matchup in the regular season. It’ll be the second meeting between Sanders and Dillingham, with the first happening during the 2023 season in the Pac-12. Colorado defeated ASU 27-24.