Deion Sanders wants to make history at Colorado.

“I love what I did at Jackson (State). I love what we accomplished at Jackson. If it wasn’t for Jackson, there probably would be no Colorado. But I’m thankful for this time and this stage,” the Buffaloes’ head coach said Thursday during an appearance on the CBS talk show The Talk. “I want to be the first African-American coach to win a dern national championship.”

No Black coach has ever won a college football national championship.

Currently, there are 15 Black head coaches at the FBS level. Sanders is one of only eight men leading a Power Five program (65 teams, including Notre Dame). Half of the Black head coaches at the Power Five level have been hired since 2021.

Sanders’ hire at CU made history in college football all on its own. In replacing Karl Dorrell, who replaced Mel Tucker, Colorado became the first FBS program to ever hire three consecutive Black head football coaches. CU is also the only FBS program to have hired four Black head football coaches in program history (Jon Embree, 2011-12).

At Jackson State, Sanders gained acclaim as an advocate for additional exposure and a level playing field for all Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). In March 2022, Sanders held a Pro Day featuring athletes from four other schools in the state of Mississippi in front of 22 NFL teams and the Canadian Football League. In April 2022, Jackson State became the first HBCU to have its spring football game televised live nationally on ESPNU.

During the 2022 season, Jackson State hosted ESPN’s College GameDay for what was only the fourth all-time visit to an HBCU for the traveling pregame show.

National championship access largely comes down to recruiting. If Sanders is to have a shot, he’s going to have to find the right pieces for the Buffs. Early returns on that front are overwhelmingly positive. CU has one of the highest-rated transfer classes in the country, headlined by former Jackson State star Travis Hunter.

Hunter was the No. 1 overall recruit in the 2022 class. He chose to sign with Jackson State to play for Sanders instead of Florida State. On Thursday, CU also received a commitment from the No. 12 prospect in the 2023 class as Cormani McClain picked CU over Miami and Alabama.