Deion Sanders warns reporters against negative coverage after barring writer from asking questions

Chris "The Bear" Fallica and Geoff Schwartz discuss if the Colorado Buffaloes will improve this season upon their return to the Big-12 conference.

Deion Sanders sent a message to reporters at a Colorado football news conference on Saturday, letting them know he tracks "where they stand" regarding the harshness of their coverage. 

Asked about the subject of negative coverage and negative questions during press conferences, Sanders said, "I’ve never read an article or a comment and said, `Oh, that’s gonna make me go harder.’ I’m gonna go hard regardless, but that comment just allowed me to know where you stand. 

"So, that’s the only differential of the thing. It doesn’t propel me. Where I came from propelled me. How I grew up propelled me. Like, you know, being an African American, one of few that’s a head coach in college football, that kind of stuff propels me. It’s not what you say. That lets me know where you stand."

Sanders' message came at the first press conference in which Denver Post columnist Sean Keeler was not permitted to ask questions of Sanders or his players. 

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Colorado head coach Deion Sanders speaks during the Big 12 college football media days in Las Vegas July 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Lucas Peltier)

Colorado's athletic department announced Friday that Keeler will not be permitted to ask questions for an unspecified amount of time due to "a series of sustained, personal attacks on the football program and specifically Coach Prime," according to ESPN.

Later during Saturday's news conference, Sanders was asked by a reporter if other reporters will be similarly silenced if they ask questions viewed as negative.

"That’s being negative right now," Sanders