Deion Sanders has seen his son Shilo rack up scholarship offers through the recruiting process in the past few years. The most recent offer, however, was just a little different as it came from Sanders' alma mater, Florida State.
The younger Sanders is a Class of 2019 cornerback out of Trinity Christian School in Cedar Hill, Texas. Ranked as the No. 290 prospect in the class, Shilo now has a chance to follow in his father's footsteps and play for the Seminoles.
"To me, it's extremely a blessing to have the same opportunity my father had and to potentially have the opportunity to carry on his legacy," Shilo said.
I am extremely grateful and blessed to receive an offer from Florida State University! Thank you to my coaching staff and teammates at @TCCHFootball pic.twitter.com/GJ4UuWTIG6
— Shilo Sanders (@ShiloSanders) October 10, 2018
His father was an All-American corner for Florida State in the late 1980s, won the Jim Thorpe Award in 1988 and went on to have a Hall of Fame career in the NFL. Normally the recruit is the first to find out about the offer and relay the message to his parents, but because of Deion's connection to Florida State, it was the other way around when the Seminoles decided to offer his son.
"He's an FSU O.G., so he found out first," Shilo said. "He was talking to Coach [David] Kelly and they got off the phone and he told me I had the offer. He told me, it was just like, 'You have to work now. You really have to focus on what you're supposed to do because people are going to be coming after you 100 percent.'"
At 6 foot, 178 pounds, Shilo has similar size to his father coming out of high school and has scholarship offers from the likes of Georgia, Texas A&M, Nebraska, Oregon, South Carolina and others.
He has the opportunity to attend the same school as his father, or create his own path. While he hasn't decided which is best for him, Shilo sees the positive in both options and welcomes the attention his last name brings.
"If I choose to take that route, and follow in my dad's footsteps, then that's excellent," Sanders said. "But I'm definitely interested in doing my own thing, too, so both could be gratifying. No matter where I go, I'm going to have the same target on my back, so it's just finding what's best for me."