Shilo Sanders recently offered a lighthearted moment while furniture shopping in Miami, but the joke he cracked carried a much heavier undertone. In a vlog titled “Furniture Shopping For My New Miami House,” the former Colorado safety was asked if he’d ever consider becoming a head coach.
His answer? A quick and resounding no-delivered with a laugh, but rooted in something far more serious.
“I don’t got the patience to coach them,” Shilo said when Florida A&M was floated as a possible destination. “But you see like Coach Prime, like all these health problems and stuff, like his blood just rising.
If he just chilled, I promise you he’ll be the healthiest man. He’ll still have his toes.
But nah… it’s a stressful job, you know, like I’m not trying to go bald. If I ever want to go bald, I’ll coach them.”
It was a punchline, sure. But it was also a son speaking from personal experience-someone who’s had a front-row seat to the toll coaching has taken on his father, Deion Sanders.
Coach Prime’s health journey over the past few years has been nothing short of brutal. He’s endured multiple surgeries, battled blood clots, and, most recently, fought off a cancer diagnosis. And through it all, he’s kept showing up-for his team, for his players, and for a program he’s trying to build from the ground up.
The blood clots started years ago, a hereditary condition that’s lingered like an uninvited guest. In 2023, Deion underwent surgeries to remove the clots and address circulation issues.
Then in October, he was back in the hospital for another procedure-this time for fresh clots in his left leg. The next day?
He was on the practice field, business as usual.
But the biggest scare came in April. During routine medical checks, doctors found an aggressive bladder tumor.
That diagnosis shook him. “When I first heard the words ‘you have cancer,’ everything got quiet,” Sanders told a Colorado Buffaloes reporter.
“It hits you different. I went straight to prayer and said, ‘Alright, Lord-what’s the plan?’
I’ve faced a lot of challenges in life, but this one brought me to my knees.”
Doctors removed his bladder to stop the spread. Surgeons reconstructed a new one using a section of his small intestine. Today, he’s cancer-free-and still coaching.
Even after a tough 3-9 season that landed Colorado at No. 62 in the PFSN College Football Playoff Rankings, Sanders never wavered. He kept leading, kept pushing, kept showing up.
That’s who he is. But it’s also what Shilo sees: a man pouring every ounce of himself into a job that doesn’t know how to give back.
So when Shilo jokes about avoiding coaching because he doesn’t want to go bald, it’s not just about hairlines or patience. It’s about watching his father sacrifice his health, his comfort, and parts of his body for the game. It’s about witnessing the grind of leadership up close and deciding-for now, at least-that it’s not a road he wants to walk.
And really, who could blame him?