Georgia Tech coach Brent Key isn’t treating Thursday night’s opener against Colorado like just another September game.
He’s leaning into the moment, and he’s not shy about why. With Deion Sanders bringing the Buffaloes to Atlanta, Key said the matchup carries a pull that goes well beyond the usual season-opening buzz.
“Not far fetched, it's the truth. I mean, Deion's the biggest sports celebrity probably to ever play in the town, in the city of Atlanta.
He's coming back home. I've equated it kind of like, 'Hey, say Tom Brady's coaching North Carolina and he'll play BC (Boston College).'
Right? I mean, it's a big deal,” said Key.
For Key, the reaction isn’t just about Sanders’ current job. It’s about the kind of presence Sanders had in Atlanta long before he became Colorado’s coach.
“And, especially for somebody that grew up in the 80s, I mean, golly. He was the the top of the top, the premier guy that that, you know, everybody wanted to be when they were growing up.
Baseball, football, just just the persona that was created around him. So all those things are big.”
Sanders’ résumé still stands alone. He remains the only athlete to ever play in the World Series and win a Super Bowl, with a championship with the Braves and Super Bowl rings with the San Francisco 49ers and the Dallas Cowboys.
Key also pointed to the new faces on Colorado’s staff as part of what makes this one worth circling. The Buffaloes hired offensive coordinator Brennan Marion and defensive coordinator Chris Marve this offseason, and Key said that only adds to the intrigue.
“Two new coordinators that have had success. They've had success.
They've had success against us, right? You know, defense coordinator's had success against us.
They've got good players, all right? We've both been head coaches the same amount of time at our respective schools.
So you put all those things together now, and you create an environment for a really, really big college football game that recruits want to come to. And that's what we want every game here at Bobby Dodd to be,” Key continued.
The game lands in Week 1, on Thursday night, with plenty of attention attached. The NFL season hasn’t started yet, and college football gets the stage to itself.
That spotlight is nothing new for Sanders, whose Colorado teams have become regulars on national TV. This one will be on ESPN, and Key said that kind of exposure is exactly what competitive programs want.
“I think anytime you open the season in a game that's an out of conference team, it's a marquee team in the country, you know, it puts eyes on your team. And look, competitors want to compete, right?
They want eyes on them. That's the confidence you have to have as a top level college football player, as a top level college coach, right?
You won't eyes on you. You want people to see you.
You want to play the best opponents. And that's what we have an opportunity to do here in two days,” Key said on Tuesday.
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