Player Career

CJ Sanders Career Story

Career story, signature performances, transfer context, and season arc are grouped for biography-style searches.

Player Story

CJ Sanders story

CJ Sanders built his college career from 2014 through 2019 as a wide receiver from Granada Hills, CA wearing No. 1, spending time with Notre Dame and SMU. The clearest part of CJ Sanders' career was his return-game role: 3,488 return yards and 6 return touchdowns across 53 career games in the available record. His largest box-score season came in 2016 with Notre Dame. Those numbers show where he fit, how often the ball or action found him, and how his role developed over time.

The value of the career arc is that it connects production to role, not just a name on a roster. His career also includes 28 rushing yards, 486 receiving yards, and 3 tackles, giving the story more than a single-category snapshot. With 53 career games in the available record, his career has enough shape to show both opportunity and production across Notre Dame and SMU.

The arc is straightforward: CJ Sanders moved through the depth chart, found a larger role, and turned that opportunity into production that can be understood through standard football numbers.

Career Arc

Track team changes, role shifts, and season-to-season movement.

  1. 1

    Notre Dame

    2014-2017

    Opening stop

  2. 2

    SMU

    2018-2019

    Final stop

Season Value Progression

201420152015201620172017201820192019
SeasonTeamPrimaryEfficiencyUsageDelta
2014 Regular SeasonNotre Dame0
2015 PostseasonNotre Dame005.60
2015 Regular SeasonNotre Dame005.60
2016 Regular SeasonNotre Dame29363.714.1293
2017 PostseasonNotre Dame007.1-293
2017 Regular SeasonNotre Dame007.10
2018 Regular SeasonSMU3950939
2019 PostseasonSMU15473.68.3115
2019 Regular SeasonSMU15473.68.30

Signature Performances

Top Games

#1 Featured game

@ Navy

Week 13 · L 28-35 · Conference game

Loss with an explosive receiving profile.

51

Receiving Yards

87.6 takeover

51 receiving yards with a 100 efficiency score.

#2

@ Texas

Week 1 · L 47-50

55

Receiving Yards

83 takeover

Loss with an explosive receiving profile.

55 receiving yards with a 100 efficiency score.

#3

vs Duke

Week 4 · L 35-38

61

Receiving Yards

81.8 takeover

Loss with an explosive receiving profile.

61 receiving yards with a 100 efficiency score.

#4

vs Nevada

Week 2 · W 39-10

46

Receiving Yards

74.8 takeover

Win with an explosive receiving profile.

46 receiving yards with a 61.3 efficiency score.

#5

vs Michigan State

Week 3 · L 28-36

53

Receiving Yards

73.4 takeover

Loss with an explosive receiving profile.

53 receiving yards with a 100 efficiency score.

Top Seasons

#1 Season by Season Value

2016 Regular Season · Notre Dame

293 primary output · 63.7 efficiency · 14.1 usage

62.4

#2

2019 Postseason · SMU

41.7

154 primary · 73.6 efficiency · 8.3 usage

#3

2019 Regular Season · SMU

41.7

154 primary · 73.6 efficiency · 8.3 usage

Milestones

0

100+ receiving yards

0

8+ catch outings

0

2+ TD games