Deion Sanders redefined the cornerback position for the Seminoles.
By BRIAN LANDMAN
Published August 28, 2003
TALLAHASSEE - Florida State defensive coordinator Mickey Andrews did not know what to expect from the skinny kid on the first day of fall practice in 1985.
Other than grainy videotapes, he never had seen him play, and he was not sure the 166-pounder from Fort Myers would want to be a cornerback.
"When we signed him, he had the choice of receiver or cornerback," Andrews said.
But the brash freshman astutely saw only two seasoned corners, redshirt sophomores Martin Mayhew and former Countryside High star Eric Williams, and figured that position afforded him the best chance to contribute sooner rather than later.
Good call.
Deion Sanders, or Prime Time as he called himself, blended sprinter's speed and a flamboyant confidence into a difference maker like no one before him. Or perhaps since.
By his senior season, when he had filled out another 20 pounds or so, Sanders had redefined the position at FSU (and later in the NFL). Andrews essentially assigned him half the field, allowing his safeties to help crowd the box to stop the run and help out the other corner in passing situations.
"You have to have someone willing to accept that challenge," Andrews said. "Most great corners or DBs or any other players that we've been around have been people who thrive on competition and the tougher it is, the more it drew out of them."
So, when FSU readied for the 1989 Sugar Bowl against Auburn, and Sanders knew he would be drawing all-everything wideout Lawyer Tillman, he issued a brazen warning that the Lawyer should know Perry Mason was coming to town and he had never lost a case.
Though Sanders did not have one of his best games in his swan song, he picked off a pass intended for Tillman in the end zone as time expired to seal FSU's 13-7 win.
"Deion went and said he was going to do something," former FSU defensive lineman and current assistant coach Odell Haggins said, "and he did it."
Sanders' legacy, on display with a sealed locker and retired jersey, is not merely found in his sound bites, honors (two-time consensus All-American and Thorpe Award winner) or statistics (14 career interceptions, not including three in bowl games, four touchdowns and school record for punt returns with 1,429 yards).
Sanders' former teammates, coaches and every Seminole who has and will follow him in Tallahassee, regardless of position, know him primarily as a tireless worker. He realized that all his natural gifts - he played Major League Baseball, ran track at FSU and had Olympic potential had he made that time commitment - were not enough.
"Some great athletes take it off," Haggins said. "But there wasn't a guy who worked harder than Deion."
That set the bar at practice. If the best player went at it like that on every rep, every day, others said they felt compelled to as well. While some receivers might not like going against him in practice, some, including Lawrence Dawsey, craved the competition and it made them better.
"Deion was a leader," Andrews said. "He was all about winning and becoming the best you could be. ... Sure, he had outstanding athletic ability, but it wasn't developed. He had to learn how to be a defensive back. he had to learn how to be a baseball player. he'd never run track in his life. He might have been the hardest working kid we've had since I've been here and we've had some hard workers. His work ethic still sets the standards for our DBs."
