Pat Narduzzi has harsh words about Deion Sanders’ roster management

Oct 5, 2019; Durham, NC, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers head coach Pat Narduzzi looks on before the game against the Duke Blue Devils at Wallace Wade Stadium. The Pittsburgh Panthers defeated the Duke Blue Devils 33-30. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports

Some coaches throughout college football may not approve of what Deion Sanders is doing, but Pat Narduzzi is actually saying it.

Narduzzi, who has coached at Pitt since 2015, recently was critical of the way Sanders has handled his roster since taking over Colorado.

Sanders made clear when he left Jackson State to coach Colorado that he would be overhauling the roster and pushing players out the door. He has embraced the transfer portal and encouraged many players to leave to make room for players preferred by the new coaching staff.

Narduzzi morally disagrees with that approach.

“That’s not the way it’s meant to be,” Narduzzi told 247Sports last week at the ACC’s spring meetings in Amelia Island, Florida. “That’s not what the rule intended to be. It was not to overhaul your roster. We’ll see how it works out but that, to me, looks bad on college football coaches across the country. The reflection is on one guy right now but when you look at it overall — those kids that have moms and dads and brothers and sisters and goals in life — I don’t know how many of those 70 that left really wanted to leave or they were kicked in the butt to get out.”

A new rule allows first-year coaches to remove players from the athletic roster so long as those players remain on scholarship. Sanders is utilizing all avenues to overhaul the Buffaloes’ roster. Over 70 players have left Colorado’s football team since Sanders took over.

Sanders has compared the roster turnover to clearing out old furniture to make room for new furniture in the house.

The Buffs went 1-11 last season and were the worst team in the Power 5 by far. It remains to be seen whether Sanders can pull off the huge 1-year turnaround that he is hoping for.

As far as Narduzzi, it’s not surprising that he is the one to make public statements against what Sanders has done. He also was quite vocal when Lincoln Riley poached Jordan Addison from Pitt.