Mel Tucker pulling for Deion Sanders at Colorado

The former Buffs coach sees a great year ahead for Coach Prime

Robert Goddin-USA TODAY Sports

Deion Sanders' arrival in Boulder continues to be a hot topic going into the 2023 college football season.

The Colorado Buffaloes coach went an unconventional route to make up ground on a terrible roster. A Big Ten coach who experience something similar at Colorado, minus the transfer portal, was Mel Tucker.

The current Michigan State coach was asked at Big Ten Media Day about his feelings on Coach Prime being at CU and if he could find success with a melting pot roster.

"(Sanders) has done a great job so far," Tucker said. "I’m pulling for him and the Buffs to get that thing going again," Tucker said. "He’s got his own process that he’s following, obviously. And I think he’s going to be wildly successful there."

Tucker sees a lot of similarities between what's going on with Sanders at Colorado and his fourth year at MSU. The transfer portal has been a huge component for both schools this off-season. It's a factor welcomed by Tucker and others.

"We’ve used (the portal) to help upgrade our roster," Tucker admitted. "We can fill some needs immediately. Some of the downside is that we all know there’s hundreds if not thousands of players that have entered the portal, haven’t found a home. And that’s disturbing. But for us, the portal is here, and we’re going to use it to benefit our program anyway that we can."

Tucker spent one season at Colorado in 2019. He vacated for his "dream job" in East Lansing with a little over a full year on the books in Boulder.