Colorado State continued to fan the flames of its rivalry with Colorado in a 43-35 loss to the Buffaloes Saturday night. The Rams punctuated two of their early touchdowns by mocking iconic celebrations Buffaloes coach Deion Sanders made famous during his playing career. The first came when Colorado State safety Ron Hardge III high-stepped into the end zone while returning a fumble 45 yards for a touchdown to put the Rams ahead 14-7.
The high step was one of Sanders' signature celebrations during his NFL playing days, trotting out the maneuver in big moments of his own such as interception returns.
The next Sanders imitation came from wide receiver Louis Brown IV, who channeled the famous "prime time" dance that Sanders popularized while electrifying the NFL as a defensive back and returner from the late 1980s until the early 2000s. Brown's attempt at the dance came after a 15-yard touchdown reception that put CSU ahead 21-14 late in the first half.
Louis Brown hit the Prime Time celebration after scoring for Colorado State 👀 pic.twitter.com/zFvisaFRcI
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) September 17, 2023
The imitations of Sanders are just the latest shots fired between the two teams. Colorado State coach Jay Norvell threw shade at Sanders earlier in the week when he said, "when I talk to grownups, I take my hat and my glasses off." Those remarks prompted Sanders to say that Colorado State had "made it personal."
Colorado State's Louis Brown IV scored a touchdown and then hit Deion's and Shedeur's celebrations 😳 pic.twitter.com/DO23ZrkqHQ
— ESPN (@espn) September 17, 2023
Ultimately, Sanders turned Norvell's jab into a marketing opportunity and a means of firing his team up as he distributed sunglasses to his players.
In the end it was Sanders and his squad who had the last laugh, overcoming an 11-point deficit to pull off a double-overtime victory and move to 3-0 on the season. Unsurprisingly, the game featured flaring tensions throughout. Colorado State was penalized 17 times for 187 yards.
