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Deion Sanders Receives Prestigious Honor on Thursday

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Nate Lunak | Last updated Aug 14, 2025 4:26 PM ET

Before his illustrious 14-year career in the NFL and tenure as the head coach of the Colorado Buffaloes, Deion Sanders carved out an impressive legacy with the Florida State Seminoles.

In his four years at the collegiate level (1985-88), he was impressive, accumulating 186 tackles, 27 pass breakups and 14 interceptions. Sanders also returned 126 punts for 1,429 yards and three touchdowns.

His time with Florida State was so amazing and even remarkable that nearly 40 years later, he's still being recognized for his performance.

Sanders Earns All-America Honor

On Thursday, the Associated Press revealed an all-time AP All-America list, which is "comprised of the top players from the past century" and voted on by 12 college football beat writers.

Sanders was one of the two cornerbacks to earn first-team honors, with his junior and senior seasons in 1987 and 1988 being specifically handpicked.

Those were exemplary years for the cornerback, racking up 83 tackles, nine interceptions, 15 pass breakups, 65 punt returns for 884 yards and two touchdowns. In 1988, he even finished eighth in the Heisman Trophy voting.

He wasn't the only former member of the Seminoles to be picked, either, with kicker Sebastian Janikowski also earning first-team honors.

Sanders Looking to Continue Success with Colorado

Not every former star that goes into coaching can be successful, but that can't be said for Sanders during his time in Boulder.

His first season wasn't all that impressive in 2023, going 4-8, but he and the program would take a major jump in 2024. Sanders helped the Buffaloes go 9-4, accomplishing their first winning season and bowl game appearance since 2016 (excluding 2020).

A Big 12 title would be another big accomplishment, but ESPN Bet only gives Colorado the ninth-best odds (+2000) to win the conference in 2025.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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