A regal new statue of Bill McCartney outside Folsom Field can either haunt Deion Sanders like a ghost or be a guide for how the CU football team can return to glory.

“You’ve got the right man. I promise you, you do. And I’m going to prove it to you,” Sanders vowed last week, clapping back against the narrative that the shine is off a CU program that now needs shades to hide the shame of sliding toward the Big 12 Conference basement.

The Buffaloes are more circus than substance.

I do believe, however, that Sanders is capable of returning CU to championship contention on a regular basis.

But it won’t be easy. Sanders will have to humble himself and go back to school, mastering the basics of Coaching 101.

CU football history can be his teacher.

Coach Mac can point Coach Prime to secrets of success that can’t be found rummaging inside Louis Vuitton luggage.

With little public fanfare but deep respect, Colorado unveiled an 8.5-foot-tall statue of McCartney during a private ceremony on Friday night that was attended by 400 friends, family, former players and members of the current Buffs team, with everybody gathering to celebrate the late coach’s 93 victories and national championship during 13 seasons on the Folsom Field sideline from 1982 to 1994.

I’m sorry Coach Mac, who passed away at 84 years old in January, wasn’t there to soak in the gratitude.

But the intimate atmosphere of the event was fitting. A legendary career doesn’t require over-the-top amplification.

Yes, McCartney could preach confidently (and sometimes controversially) from the bully pulpit of his Promise Keepers organization.

What he seemed to enjoy more, however, was the personal interaction of one-on-one mentoring. Mac offered me his wisdom countless times over more than the 50 years I knew him, whether our topic of debate was the evil of wearing Nebraska red or the healing power of faith, and the chat took place on the CU practice field or across the lunch table of a restaurant off Highway 36.

Prime raises a big tent, but seldom lets unwashed masses get too close.

Maybe that’s a function of internet mistrust, brand obsession, or how the world has changed.

But image is everything to Sanders, while McCartney viewed coaching as a call to service.

Prime sometimes allows the me-first in him to get in his own way.

Why let that happen? I don’t get it, especially because there is so much about Sanders that McCartney told me he admired.

Fearless in the face of competition, unapologetically demanding and comfortable in your own skin are leadership qualities that resonate with players.

Think what you might about a coach at a public university wearing Christianity on his sleeve, but a staunch belief in something bigger than yourself is invaluable to a team becoming a brotherhood.

Like McCartney, Sanders is far better at attracting talent than managing the game clock. But Jimmys and Joes beat Xs and Os.

As Colorado took the field Saturday night against Arizona State, the Buffs ranked 15th among 16 teams in the conference standings.

“Give me an opportunity,” Sanders asked, “and a little more time.”

It’s my fond hope that at the ripe old age of 58, maybe Prime has finally welcomed a little humility through his thick skull.

Sanders is instinctively savvy. In only his third season as the coach of a major college football program, here’s hoping he has a firmer grip on what works, as well as what doesn’t.

A vision of greatness doesn’t count for squat on the scoreboard without a detailed system implemented by experienced assistant coaches that can do more than tell stories about NFL glory days.

Embracing people strong enough to speak up when you’re wrong is most valuable when the going gets tough.

A winning culture can’t be rented, at any price.

Developing talent pays more dividends than poaching it.

Treat young athletes like disposable parts easily replaced in the portal and no matter how much you preach being a mentor, you look like a dream merchant.

When patching together offensive and defensive lines every year, it should be no surprise when they don’t hold up.

Razzle and dazzle get our attention, but they don’t sustain football success the way blocking and tackling can.

Patience is a virtue. After three seasons in Boulder, McCartney’s record stood at 7-25-1.

Quick fixes are seldom built to last.

Now let’s see if Sanders can exhibit the patience required to nurture and watch a long-dormant CU football program grow into something truly special.