ASU's Kenny Dillingham and CU's "Coach Prime" face off this weekend
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ASU head coach Kenny Dillingham (left) and Colorado's Deion Sanders. Photos, from left: Kevin Abele/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images and Dustin Bradford/Getty Images
On Saturday, ASU faces Colorado and the most famous coach in college football: Deion Sanders.
Catch up quick: Sanders — aka "Coach Prime," a derivative of the "Prime Time" nickname he had as an NFL player — took over a program that was 1-11 last season and used new NCAA transfer rules to revamp CU's team with former players from historically Black colleges and universities, Axios' Russell Contreras reports.
- In the season opener, Colorado shocked the college football world by beating TCU, last year's national title runner-up, 45-42. CU is now 3-2.
The intrigue: There's another new coach who took advantage of the transfer rules: ASU's Kenny Dillingham — albeit, with less controversy.
The big picture: The NCAA has loosened transfer rules in recent years, making it easier for a player to move to a different school without penalty.
Flashback: After Sanders was hired, he warned players from the previous Colorado Buffaloes team they likely would not have a roster spot and urged them to leave to make room for other players.
- He kept only 10 scholarship players from last year and added 53 transfers — the most any team has ever added in an offseason, according to ESPN.
The other side: Dillingham, an ASU graduate and first-time head coach hired after last season, picked up 25 Division I transfers. Rivals ranked ASU's transfer portal success No. 2 in the country, behind only Colorado.
- But ASU's pickups were out of necessity, Dillingham told Axios Phoenix. Former Sun Devils transferred out in droves after last year's disappointing season and amid the ongoing NCAA investigation into the team's recruiting practices.
Between the lines: When we talked to Dillingham earlier this season, we asked how the relaxed transfer rules would impact the future of college football and whether he thought more coaches would try the Sanders method of forcing out players.
- Dillingham said he expected coaches would try many different transfer techniques but that it would likely take three to four years before it became clear which were effective long-term.
What he's saying: "It's just a waiting game to see which is the best strategy here. It's fun to be a part of a changing of the times," he said.
1 secret spilled: In a press conference earlier this week, Sanders said he has a great relationship with Dillignham and revealed "once upon a time" he was assembling a staff and had tapped Dillingham to be a part of it. He didn't reveal any other details.
- "When I saw [Dillingham] get this opportunity [at ASU], I was ecstatic," Sanders said. "He is great for their program. He's great for college football. He's a tremendous mind."
Details: The 1-4 Sun Devils face Colorado at 3:30pm Saturday in Tempe.