Deion Sanders’s Son Tackles Emmitt Smith’s Son in Full-Circle Moment During Stanford-Colorado Game

Children of NFL royalty were everywhere Friday night in Boulder.

For five years in the 1990s, Hall of Famers Deion Sanders and Emmitt Smith were teammates on the Cowboys. They embodied the spirit of America’s most popular sports franchise, marrying flashy aesthetics to unparalleled dominance.

Now, the two Dallas greats have given way to the next generation. Sanders is Colorado’s highly successful first-year coach, with two of his sons starring for the Buffaloes. Smith’s son, E.J. Smith, is a running back at Stanford.

Friday night, the two Cowboys greats’ sons came together on the field. With 9:57 left in the third quarter of the Buffaloes’ home game against the Cardinal, Colorado safety Shilo Sanders tackled Smith behind the line of scrimmage on second-and-goal.

Deion Sanders' son tackling Emmitt Smith's son in a college football game. pic.twitter.com/1ZQdle94fA

— Bryan Fischer (@BryanDFischer) October 14, 2023

Despite being on opposite sides Friday night, Smith and Sanders have remained close after their playing careers. When Jackson State hired Sanders in September 2020, Smith tweeted congratulations, humorously offering his services as a running backs coach.

Congrats are in order for my brother and friend, @DeionSanders! You’ve worked hard to get to this point and I’m proud to see the work pay off. If you need a RB coach with some NFL experience... I know a guy! 😎 pic.twitter.com/vjQo0Cedvd

— Emmitt Smith (@EmmittSmith22) September 25, 2020

In the week leading up to the Buffaloes’ game against Stanford, Smith told KUSA-TV in Denver that he “[loves] Deion, but gotta root for my kid.”