How Tomekia Reed’s departure from Jackson State differs from Deion Sanders

“HBCU Twitter: Where’s the selective outrage over this,” posted the account @coachdancyfade on Twitter, an account created with the motivation of promoting Deion Sanders and the Colorado Buffaloes.

Another Twitter/X user @MRG1680 also chimed in, saying “So now when Prime did it. He was lambasted. She do it and it’s celebratory. All I’m gonna saying is I’m gonna need some consistency from folk. Best wishes to the sista and her staff tho.”

In any social media discussion, such as sports, politics, or relationships, where differing opinions exist, individuals tend to interpret information to align with their biases, regardless of the truth or context. The sheer action of Reed leaving to coach a non-HBCU program caused people to immediately want what they consider to be consistency in how Sanders was treated upon his exit. The thought process isn’t new. The same comments were echoed around the departure of former Florida A&M head football coach Willie Simmons when he left the Rattlers to become Duke University’s running backs coach under new head coach Manny Diaz. Who’s to say the next HBCU coach in any sport that leaves their program to coach at a non-HBCU doesn’t illicit this same discussion?

Just as was discussed upon Simmons’s departure from Florida A&M, we must unpack this same topic for Reed’s departure from Charlotte. Tomekia Reed joined Jackson State in 2018 after departing Hinds Community College. Jackson State flourished under her leadership, with three trips to the NCAA Tournament in 2021, 2022, and 2024 as well as multiple SWAC Championships. She built the Jackson State basketball program into a national power and drew acclaim from coaches at the pinnacle of the sport.

Jackson State received a vote in the AP top 25 poll for the best women’s basketball teams in the nation and, upon celebrating the accomplishment on her Twitter/X account, South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley showed her love, posting, “You’d have another one if I was a voter! Keep doing the BELIEVABLE!”

UConn coach Geno Ariemma spoke glowingly of her following their matchup in the first round of the Women’s March Madness tournament in March.

“I wanted to commend her on her season, going undefeated in your league. I don’t care what league you play in. I don’t care who you play against. You play, 18 conference games and you win them all and you win your conference tournament. That’s a hell of a job and it’s not like the first time, right? I mean, she’s been doing this for quite some time now there and a lot of these coaches that work like that and you have tremendous success and put together great teams and have put together a terrific program. Nobody knows about them. They certainly don’t get on TV enough. They certainly don’t get enough recognition. And I wanted to let her know that and that I wanted to I wanted to put myself out there and for her. And I think we need coaches like her to be celebrated.”

Meanwhile, amid the acclaim, Reed took to the post-Jackson State-UConn press conference to speak about her responsibility to aid in the promotion of HBCU basketball.

“For me at Jackson State, you know, I wanted to put not only our university on the map. I wanted to put HBCUs on the map. We have such a special community that a lot of people overlook. We have a community that’s not built on wins and losses but built on family and love. And, you know, I want to be a great representation of that. I’m an advocate for HBCUs.”

Her show of support for HBCU athletics endeared her to fans around the nation. Not to mention that she spoke out against CBS and 60 Minutes for their portrayal of Jackson, Mississippi in their most recent profile of Deion Sanders last Fall.

“@60Minutes y’all made Jackson, MS look horrible. You should be ashamed of yourselves for showing the worst house you can find in America and make it like that describes us. I’m not even sure if that abandoned house you showed is even in Jackson,” she tweeted in September.

The meaningful gestures and the remarkable success of her team on the basketball court elevated her to a prominent position in HBCU athletics. HBCU fans expressed gratitude for her six years in the HBCU realm and eagerly anticipate her future achievements at Charlotte.

Compare Reed’s time with Deion Sanders’ tenure at Jackson State. He made significant contributions to the Tigers, sparking lasting interest in HBCU football. Deion Sanders aimed to revolutionize HBCU football during his tenure at Jackson State. Sanders mentioned that he had a purpose, a higher calling for why he chose to come to Jackson State. However, he departed without fully accomplishing the mission. Plus, upon his departure, dangerous rumors festered about his time that were never addressed or disproven by Sanders or his camp. His daughter Deiondria Sanders even spewed misinformation about supposed violence that occurred on the campus of Jackson State, which she issued an apology for in January 2023.

If detractors allowed themselves to think objectively, they’d understand the differences between the two departures and why they’re viewed differently. But, users on social media don’t listen to reason, especially when it flies in the face of their talking points and deeply held beliefs. Tomekia Reed deserves all of the love, acclaim, and congratulatory messages that she is receiving. Her departure at Jackson State shouldn’t be weaponized to further an agenda to paint Jackson State supporters and the HBCU community as arbiters of bad faith in discourse about Deion Sanders.