Before Signing $30,000,000 Colorado Deal, Deion Sanders Opted to Get His Two Toes Chopped Off To Not Miss More Weeks With Jackson State

Deion Sanders is one of the strongest sporting figures and his dedication to playing and coaching is a testament to that fact. Despite having 12 surgeries on his left foot and almost always at risk of losing his leg, he has always fought through it. So much so, that before his $30,000,000 deal with Colorado, Coach Prime even got two of his toes amputated in order to get back to coaching Jackson State as early as possible.

Advertisement

In a report by USA Today’s Jarrett Bell, it was reported that Colorado’s assistant athletic trainer Lauren Askevold has always followed Coach Prime through his challenging medical journey helping him keep his leg active. Askevold was also with Coach Prime at Jackson State treating his leg three times a day with therapeutic foot massages.

Deion Sanders Chose to Cut His Two Toes Than Miss Additional Weeks as Jackson State Coach

Deion Sanders had to undergo a series of surgeries on his left foot in 2021 when he was a JSU coach. He had to miss three of his games since he was under medical care for an entire month. Refusing to miss any more games and to get back with the Jackson State, Coach Prime decided to get his two toes amputated to save him some time.

Advertisement

“Askevold reminded Sanders of the decision to have his toes amputated,” Bell reported. “Doctors told him that they could have saved the toes, which would have required him being hospitalized for another two to three weeks and missing additional games.”

“Man, forget the toes,” Coach Prime responded. “They were charcoal black. They were dead. You look down there and it’s two black toes. Take ’em. What am I going to do with them?” It was clear that he could not stay away from football no matter what the situation.

Is Coach Prime at Risk of Losing His Leg?

Coach Prime underwent yet another surgery earlier this year after a blood clot occurred this time on his right leg. This happened just a month after he had a blood clot removed from his left leg. Both surgeries were reported to be a success and Coach Prime feels great after removing both the blood clots.

“Now, the blood flow is great,” Sanders told Bell. “I was hurting so bad because I wasn’t getting any blood flow down there over the last year. That’s why I was hurting.” Coach Prime has seen a massive improvement in his health since 2021 when he was at a risk of losing his leg. Now that his health is stable it doesn’t appear that he would have to amputate his entire leg, in fact, he made it very clear when he was undergoing his second surgery in July this year.

Advertisement