Deion Sanders said when he first arrived at Colorado, he’s bringing his own luggage, and it’s Louis.

Since then, the Buffaloes have gotten the message. According to reports, since Coach Prime made that statement in December, 57 players have entered the portal.

On Thursday, Colorado athletic director Rick George made it clear he was in support of Sanders’ drastic moves.

“I have confidence in him and his staff and they know what they’re doing,” George told ESPN on Thursday following the Pac-12′s spring meetings. “… He’s been very honest and forthright. He’s been very open about it publicly and privately. He’s trying to build a winner at Colorado, and this is his way to do it.”

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According to ESPN’s Stats & Information, 71 players have entered the portal since August. The team finished 1-11 last season.

Colorado leads the country in portal entries with Arkansas State second with 50.

According to The Associated Press, there isn’t another school that has more than 48.

Colorado’s exodus is almost double the total of the next largest number of players entering the portal among the 11 Power Five programs with a new head coach.

Arizona State is next with 27 scholarships players entering the portal since coach Kenny Dillingham was hired Nov. 27. The Sun Devils had 11 players jump in the portal during the spring window, which ran from April 15-30.

Nebraska has had 23 scholarship players enter the portal since Matt Rhule was hired the day after Thanksgiving.

“When [Sanders] first came in, he said, ‘There’s a lot of people here who may not be here,’ because he evaluated and looked at the talent on our team,” George told ESPN. “He’s just publicly stated it, where a lot of people don’t. We’re not the first to do this. The NCAA rule says you can have those discussions. If a student-athlete wants to stay, they can stay. The university has to pay for them, they don’t count on your scholarship limits and they’re not on the team.”

Mark Heim is a sports reporter for The Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Mark_Heim.