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Deion Sanders’ success at Jackson State has local government pushing for new stadium
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Deion Sanders’ success at Jackson State pushed the Jackson (Miss.) City Council to unanimously approve a resolution Tuesday that backs the building of a new football stadium, all with the intention of keeping Sanders in town for years to come.
“We’ve had so much success with our coach, Deion Sanders Prime Time, and it’s just the perfect time, if we’re going to get a new stadium, to start talking … and let’s try to make it a reality,” Ward 3 Councilman Kenneth Stokes said via TV station WLBT in Jackson, per HBCU Gameday. “We’re all hoping that Coach Prime stays in the city for a long period of time, but a lot of colleges and universities are trying to get his talents.
“Maybe if we can show, as a state, that we are committed to him staying, and to the new stadium, maybe it would help encourage him to stay,” Stokes added.
Jackson State currently plays at Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium, which is a few miles away from campus. The stadium has a capacity of around 60,000.
The Tigers, who are off to a 5-0 start under Sanders, are always near the top in attendance at the FCS level and even outdraw a lot of Power 5 programs.
Those Power 5 programs, like the Jackson City Council, have taken note of what Sanders has done in his 3 seasons at Jackson State, which is why local officials think now might be the time to get the ball rolling on a new stadium.
Last year, Sanders was named SWAC Coach of the Year and also won the Eddie Robinson Award.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
