In the course of a 10-minute appearance on The Tonight Show Thursday in New York, Colorado football coach Deion Sanders urged Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson to run for president, advised Caitlin Clark to “finish strong” and said the coming football season will be a tough for him emotionally because it will be his last year coaching his sons in college.
Sanders, 56, made his appearance as part of a national tour this week to promote his new book entitled “Elevate and Dominate.” By the time it was over, Jimmy Fallon, the show’s host, had Sanders on his feet coaching life-size cut-out photographs of The Rock, as well as Clark, the Iowa basketball star, and Jason Kelce, who recently retired from the NFL.
“What would you say to our pal Dwayne Johnson to get him fired up?’ Fallon asked.
“It’s time for you to step up to the plate and take it to the next level,” Sanders said to the image of Johnson, who is returning to fight in WrestleMania next month. “I need you to run for office. I need you to be the president of the United States of America.”
Before that, Fallon brought out an image of Clark for Sanders to “coach.”
“Caitlin, baby girl, let me tell you something,” Sanders said. “We coming down the homestretch. This is gonna be your last dance. And guess what? I don’t care what they say about the WNBA, but I know what you’re capable of. I need you to go out there and lead like you’ve never led before. I need you to dominate like you’ve never dominated before. And unapologetically, girl, I need you to be you!”
What else did Deion Sanders say on the show?
Fallon asked him about his professional playing days as a two-sport star in baseball and football and even brought along a baseball card of Sanders when he played for the New York Yankees. Sanders autographed it for Fallon, who then asked what felt better – scoring a touchdown or hitting a home run.
“Touchdown,” Sanders said. “I get to enjoy that for six days. Baseball, you got another game tomorrow.”
Sanders also told Fallon that one day he’d like to trade jobs with him and be a talk-show host, though Fallon didn’t seem keen on filling in for “Coach Prime” in Boulder.
“The University of Colorado would be so upset,” Fallon said. “They would be so bummed if I showed up to practice like, `Hey guys, let’s watch a movie. Have you guys seen `Rudy’ (the football movie)?’ Let’s watch `Rudy.’”
What did he say about the football season?
Sanders said he can’t wait for it and that his team is revamped after finishing 4-8 last season in his first year on the job.
Fallon told him he even heard a “rumor” that Sanders’ quarterback son Shedeur might be the top pick in the NFL draft next year.
“Well, he should,” Sanders said. “Why would they be rumors?”
Fallon then noted it will be the last year for him coaching Shedeur and another son, Shilo, who plays safety for the Buffaloes.
“I’ve coached them ever since they’ve been babies,” Sander said. “So it’s going to be a great year. But it’s going to be a tough year emotionally because, you know, this is it.”
“Yeah, you’re a dad,” Fallon said. “You love your kids.”
“Yeah,” Sanders said. “But I got to send ‘em off so they can make a lot of money and they can come and take care of dad.”
Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email: bschrotenb@usatoday.com