The 2023 NFL Draft saw only one HBCU player get drafted, which former Jackson State head coach Deion Sanders criticized heavily. Cowboys vice president of player personnel Will McClay fired back against Sanders’ comments on Tuesday.
Jackson State defensive back Isaiah Bolden was the only player from an HBCU school that heard his name called at the NFL Draft. The Patriots took a chance on him with their final pick of the draft.
Deion Sanders didn’t mince words about how he felt about the situation, saying that the other 31 teams should be “ashamed” to not select an HBCU player.
Will McClay spoke about Sanders’ comments, saying that he understands why Sanders wants to see HBCU players get selected.
“Deion’s doing a great job of promoting HBCUs and promoting Colorado and all those things,” McClay told Sports Illustrated’s Mike Fisher. “And so that’s part of what the deal is. He wants to see players drafted. We want to draft good football players and good football players come from everywhere.”
McClay then made it clear that there is no conspiracy against HBCU players. He claims that players simply “need to have a draftable grade” to be selected.
“There’s not a conspiracy against drafting HBCU players. We’re looking for players that can come from anywhere. I think that we’ve had the opportunities in the NFL in having things to highlight the HBCU schools. The players have to have draftable grades.”
Sanders’ comments certainly seem a little hypocritical considering his move to Colorado recently. He wants the NFL to draft players from HBCUs, but he himself opted to leave Jackson State in favor of a Power Five conference job at Colorado.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.