Buffs Beat

What Syracuse Orange Coach Fran Brown Said About Deion Sanders' Spring Game Idea

Syracuse Orange coach Fran Brown is a big fan of Colorado Buffaloes coach Deion Sanders' idea for a spring game scrimmage against another team, and Brown offered to travel to Boulder, Colorado. Both coaches talked about financial literacy classes for their teams as well.

Charlie Viehl

Jul 25, 2024; Charlotte, NC, USA; Syracuse Orange head coach Fran Brown speaks to the media during the ACC Kickoff at Hilton Charlotte Uptown.
Jul 25, 2024; Charlotte, NC, USA; Syracuse Orange head coach Fran Brown speaks to the media during the ACC Kickoff at Hilton Charlotte Uptown. / Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images
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Colorado Buffaloes coach Deion Sanders and Syracuse Orange coach Fran Brown have a chance to make history by having their teams scrimmage against each other in the spring. According to Brown, both schools are waiting for approval from the NCAA in order to make the idea a reality.

"It's in the hands of the NCAA right now. We all locked in. Me and Coach Prime are excited," Brown said after a spring practice. "I love Coach Prime. Since I met him when I started recruiting his son Shilo [Sanders] back at Baylor, he's been just a straight class A dude, trying to show all young dudes how to come up in the game. How to do stuff right and just to be yourself. Locking in. We've been locked in. We're hoping this happens.”

Colorado head coach Deion Sanders watches the run of play during the 3rd quarter between the Kansas Jayhawks and Colorado.
Nov 23, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Colorado head coach Deion Sanders watches the run of play during the 3rd quarter between the Kansas Jayhawks and the Colorado Buffaloes at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. / Nick Tre. Smith-Imagn Images

Javon Edwards of Syracuse.com reported that the compliance offices of Colorado and Syracuse have filed the necessary paperwork in order to scrimmage against each other. Currently the NCAA does not allow teams to face each other in the spring. Will the Orange and Buffaloes get approved? Both Sanders and Brown appear to be fully on board.

“Yeah, absolutely, I would definitely want to do that,” Brown said. “I think that it will help the game because where it’s going nobody wants to have spring games anymore.”

As Brown referenced, a number of college football programs are cancelling their spring games altogether. Coaches have become increasing worried about tampering and the transfer portal, leading many to cancel the spring game scrimmage in order to gain a competitive advantage. However, Sanders and Brown might start a new trend if they can pull this off.

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"I would like to play against another team in the spring," Sanders said. "That's what I'm trying to do right now. To have a competitive (spring) playing against your own guys kind of gets monotonous, and you really can't tell the level of your guys because it's the same old, same old. Everybody kind of knows each other toward the end. I would like to style it like the pros. I would like to practice against someone for a few days and then you have a spring game. I think the public will be satisfied with that tremendously."

When "Coach Prime" announced his idea of practicing and scrimmaging against another college football team as a replacement for the traditional spring game, an intrasquad scrimmage, Brown was quick to respond on social media.

Syracuse Orange head coach Fran Brown speaks to the media during the ACC Kickoff at Hilton Charlotte Uptown
Jul 25, 2024; Charlotte, NC, USA; Syracuse Orange head coach Fran Brown speaks to the media during the ACC Kickoff at Hilton Charlotte Uptown. / Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

Brown and Sanders have also talked about the meeting between their teams being more than practices and a scrimmage. In addition, both coaches are also planning a few academic events.

“We got some financial literacy things that we are going to go through,” Brown said. “We’re going to have an academic session also for them to understand and know how important it is to handle all of those other pieces.”

As Colorado and Syracuse wait for a decision from the NCAA, the Buffaloes' spring game is currently scheduled for April 19.

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Charlie Viehl
CHARLIE VIEHL

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