"You can't buy what Deion needs" - Jason Whitlock names one major thing Coach Prime and the Colorado Buffaloes lacked this season

During a recent episode of his podcast "Fearless with Jason Whitlock," Jason Whitlock highlighted the contrasting statements made by head coach Deion Sanders regarding recruitment for his team, the Colorado Buffaloes.

Last week, Sanders had stated that his program would not act as an ATM for potential recruits. However, in light of his team's sixth straight loss and several top recruits leaving the team, he now claims that CU donors need to contribute more to enable him to buy more players.

Whitlock speculated that Sanders' recruiting philosophy might have changed due to the team's recent difficult period. He added that Deion can buy all the players that he needs or that he thinks he needs, but he can’t buy one thing:

“You can't buy what Deion needs and what that team really needs: a level of toughness and a level of discipline,” Jason Whitlock remarked. “That can't be bought"

There was a special reason behind Whitlock’s remark. Earlier in the season, before a loss (23-17) to Utah Utes left the Buffs with a 4-8 record overall and a 1-8 record in Pac-12, Sanders had maintained that his team would not buy players, emphasizing that:

“We're not an ATM; that's not going to happen here if you come to Colorado to play football for me and the Colorado Buffaloes because you really want to play football and receive a wonderful education,” Primetime stated. “All the business stuff is going to be handled on the back end if that's the case, but we are not an ATM.”

However, after the Colorado Buffaloes' eighteenth loss in their last nine games, the HC delivered a different message.

Deion Sanders’ need for funding: "We definitely need giving”

When a post-game reporter asked him if he felt he had the resources at Colorado to succeed at the level he anticipated, Sanders remarked,

“We definitely need giving, you know. What I mean, it's unfortunate to say this, but some kids cost,” Buffs HC Sanders recently said. “We can sit up and talk about great coaching and great this and great that all we want, but it's going to be a credit card swipe, some kind of (contribution) where with all these guys going to these playoffs, right? Yeah, I understand that.”

Jason Whitlock commented that it was still unknown whether Deion Sanders would be able to purchase all the players he believed he needed in the off-season. However, toughness and discipline, qualities the team truly requires can't be purchased.