Christopher Sanders (born December 22, 1977) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

for SMU and

Chattanooga Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, ...

. He signed with the Tennessee Titans of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL) after going

undrafted In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

in the

2001 NFL Draft The 2001 NFL Draft was the 66th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible professional football players. The draft, which is officially referred to as the "NFL Player Selection Meeting," was held at the ...

. He primarily played arena football. He had two stints with the Titans and one with the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...

where he was allocated to

NFL Europe NFL Europe League (simply called NFL Europe and known in its final season as NFL Europa League) was a professional American football league that functioned as the developmental minor league of the National Football League (NFL). Originally f ...

for the

Frankfurt Galaxy Two American football franchises have been referred to as the Frankfurt Galaxy: * Frankfurt Galaxy (NFL Europe), active in NFL Europe between 1991 and 2007 * Frankfurt Galaxy (ELF) The Frankfurt Galaxy is an American football team in Frankfurt, ...

. He played in the

af2 The AF2 (often styled as af2, and short for arenafootball2) was the Arena Football League's developmental league; it was founded in 1999 and played its first season in 2000. Like its parent AFL, the AF2 played using the same arena football ru ...

for the

Roanoke Steam The Roanoke Steam was an arena football team that began as a charter member franchise of af2, the developmental league for the Arena Football League. They played their home games at the Roanoke Civic Center in Roanoke, Virginia. The Steam were ...

and

Manchester Wolves The Manchester Wolves were a professional arena football team, based at the Verizon Wireless Arena in Manchester, New Hampshire, which folded at the end of the 2009 season along with the rest of the league. They played in the East Division of the ...

. He also played in the

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...

(AFL) for the

Buffalo Destroyers Buffalo most commonly refers to: * Bubalina, including most "Old World" buffalo, such as water buffalo * Bison, including the American buffalo * Buffalo, New York Buffalo or buffaloes may also refer to: Animals * Bubalina, a subtribe of the tr ...

Orlando Predators The Orlando Predators were a professional arena football team based in Orlando, Florida and member of the Arena Football League (AFL). The team was most recently owned by Orlando Predators LLC, a company owned by David A. Siegel, and played its ...

, Kansas City Command,

Arizona Rattlers The Arizona Rattlers are a professional indoor American football team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They are currently members of the Indoor Football League (IFL). The Rattlers were founded in 1992 as an expansion team in the Arena Football League ...

, Dallas Desperadoes, and Dallas Vigilantes.

Early life and high school career

Sanders was voted by the

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as the 1995 5A Offensive Player of the Year at

Edward S. Marcus High School Edward S. Marcus High School is a public high school in Flower Mound, Texas. It is a part of the Lewisville Independent School District. Academics Marcus High School was named a National Blue Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education in 19 ...

in Flower Mound, Texas. Sanders was the starting quarterback for the first successful passing team in Texas High School Football.

College career

SMU

Sanders played

for SMU, throwing for 1,728 yards and twelve

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Ameri ...

s in 21 games, including ten starts.

Chattanooga

Sanders transferred to

. While there, Sanders started 22 games for the Mocs. He set school records for passing yards (7,230),

s (49), completions (584), 200-yard passing games (22), 300-yard passing games (12) and total offense (7,247). Sanders was one of sixteen finalists for the Walter Payton Award recognizing best player in

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

Division I-AA The NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), formerly known as Division I-AA, is the second-highest level of college football in the United States, after the Football Bowl Subdivision. Sponsored by the National Collegiate Athletic ...

football his senior season. He led the Southern Conference in all major passing categories as senior, throwing for 3,691 yards while also tying a school record with six touchdown passes against

Mississippi Valley State Mississippi Valley State University (MVSU, The Valley or Valley) is a public historically black university in Mississippi Valley State, Mississippi, adjacent to Itta Bena, Mississippi.Jerry Rice Jerry Lee Rice (born October 13, 1962) is an American former professional football wide receiver who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 20 seasons. Known primarily as a member of the San Francisco 49ers, winning three championshi ...

's single game receiving record for Touchdowns in a game for

/ FCS. It was also

Jerry Rice Jerry Lee Rice (born October 13, 1962) is an American former professional football wide receiver who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 20 seasons. Known primarily as a member of the San Francisco 49ers, winning three championshi ...

's alma mater. The two were a record breaking duo at

. Sanders also connected with DeMatteo for thirteen completions for 207 yards and three touchdown passes at Louisville, a

Division I-A The NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), formerly known as Division I-A, is the highest level of college football in the United States. The FBS consists of the largest schools in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). As ...

/ FBS opponent. Sanders passed 367 yards and three touchdowns in the game. Louisville won the game 58–30, but was a career day for the duo vs a much more supreme

Conference USA Conference USA (C-USA or CUSA) is an intercollegiate athletic conference whose current member institutions are located within the Southern United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I in all sports. C-USA's offices are l ...

team. Sanders was an

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

n honorable mention as a junior with 3,539 yards and 27 touchdown passes.

Professional career

Tennessee Titans

Sanders went

in the

. He then signed a contract with the Tennessee Titans as a

rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience and expertise, a rookie is usually inexperienced ...

and went 11-of-21 for 151 yards in the preseason before being released.

Atlanta Falcons

In 2002, Sanders was signed as a free agent by the

Frankfurt Galaxy

From the Falcons, Sanders was assigned to

but was later waived before the start of the season.

Roanoke Steam

Sanders signed with the

and was named af2 Offensive Player of the Week in his first game, throwing for 211 yards and four touchdowns.

Tennessee Titans (second stint)

Sanders left the Steam and re-signed with the Titans, spending training camp with the team.

Buffalo Destroyers

In 2003, Sanders played for the

as a back-up and played in five games with a pair of starts to finish the regular season with 529 yards on 52-of-103 passing with eight touchdowns and three interceptions. He saw his first significant action in Week 9, stepping in during the second half to complete five-of-nine passes for 55 yards against the

Detroit Fury The Detroit Fury were an arena football team based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. History The team was a member of the Arena Football League from 2001 to 2004 and played at The Palace of Auburn Hills, also the home of the NBA's Detroit Pistons. The ...

. His performance earned him a start at

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

in Week 10 where he was 21-of-36 for 213 yards and five touchdowns in a 46–39 upset win. He completed 14-of-25 passes for 134 yards with two touchdowns and three interceptions at the

. Sanders completed 12-of-33 passes for 127 yards and one touchdown at

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

Orlando Predators

In 2004, Sanders signed with the

Manchester Wolves

In 2004, Sanders signed with the

of af2 where he played in 16 games, passing for 4,184 yards and 66 touchdowns. He set seven team records, while finishing second in the league in passing and also led the team in rushing with 129 yards. Overall, Sanders ranked second in the league in rushing touchdowns with 18 fora total of 84 touchdowns on the season.

Orlando Predators (second stint)

In 2005, Sanders appeared in six games - starting three - for the Orlando Predators. For the season he was, 68-of-128 for 897 yards and 16 touchdowns with two interceptions and had a 53.1 completion percentage and quarterback rating of 100.3 while also rushing 15 times for 22 yards and three touchdowns. He was promoted to starter after his strong second-half performance in the 72–60 victory against the New York Dragons after Joe Hamilton went down in the first half with a shoulder injury. In that contest, Sanders completed 13-of-17 passes for 130 yards, two touchdowns and two rushing touchdowns. Sanders made contributions in Orlando's 52–49 victory over the Georgia Force as he made his first start for the Predators in place of Hamilton and completed 20-of-34 passes for 236 yards and three touchdowns along with a rushing touchdown. He was 18-of-31 for 262 yards and five touchdowns at the Philadelphia Soul. Sanders was 13-of-37 for 221 yards and five touchdowns and one interception against the

Austin Wranglers The Austin Wranglers were an arena football team based in Austin, Texas. They played four seasons in the Arena Football League from 2004 to 2007 and spent one season in af2, the AFL's developmental league, in 2008. They made playoff appearances i ...

Kansas City Brigade

In 2006, Sanders became the starting quarterback for the

Kansas City Brigade Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the we ...

in Week 8 at the Austin Wranglers and started the next seven games. He tied for 14th in the AFL with 115 rushing yards - third among quarterbacks - and second with 13 rushing touchdowns - first among quarterbacks. Sanders set single-season team records for rushing attempts (46), yards (115), touchdowns (13), pass completions (184), completion percentage (66.2%), passing yards (2,018), passing touchdowns (36), quarterback rating (126.1), and total offense (4,538). He tied for second in

expansion team An expansion team is a new team in a sports league, usually from a city that has not hosted a team in that league before, formed with the intention of satisfying the demand for a local team from a population in a new area. Sporting leagues also ...

history in single-game rushing touchdowns with three against the Georgia Force and fifth in single-season rushing touchdowns (13). Sanders was named Offensive Player of the Week at the Nashville Kats on April 22 and Offensive Player of the Game twice: April 1 against the Georgia Force and April 22 at the Nashville Kats. He completed one-of-two passes for 10 yards in a relief role in the team opener at the Dallas Desperados. Sanders completed three-of-five passes for 32 yards and threw his first touchdown of the season against Philadelphia. In his first start of the season at Austin he threw for 229 yards on 16-of-36 passes with three touchdowns and two interceptions. Sanders threw for a season-high 320 yards on 26-of-42 passes with five touchdowns and two interceptions at New York. Against Georgia he completed 29-of-41 passes for 272 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions and rushed three times for 16 yards with a career-high and single-game franchise-tying three touchdowns. Sanders threw a season-best seven touchdown tosses against

while completing 26-of-32 passes for 265 yards and rushed five times for 11 yards and one touchdown. Against the Colorado Crush he was 24-of-36 for 244 yards with five touchdowns and three interceptions while also adding 10 rushing yards on five attempts with two touchdowns. He notched season-highs in completions (30) and attempts (43) while passing for 282 yards with four touchdowns and one interception and ran nine times for 25 yards and two touchdowns at Nashville. Sanders was six-of-12 for 80 yards with one touchdown and one interception against Orlando.

Arizona Rattlers

On March 6, 2007, Sanders signed with the

Dallas Desperados

On November 2, 2007, Sanders was signed by the Dallas Desperados to serve as the backup quarterback to Clint Dolezel. That season, Sanders completed 50-of-100 passes for 634 yards with 11 touchdowns and six interceptions in seven games with two starts for the Desperados. He made his first appearance of the season in Week 4 against the

Gladiators A gladiator ( la, gladiator, "swordsman", from , "sword") was an armed combatant who entertained audiences in the Roman Republic and Roman Empire in violent confrontations with other gladiators, wild animals, and condemned criminals. Some gla ...

, completing one-of-two passes for seven yards. He threw his first touchdown of the season against Nashville as he hit three-of-five passes for 63 yards while also throwing an interception in relief of

Sherdrick Bonner Sherdrick Deon "Sed" Bonner (born October 19, 1968) is a former American football quarterback who played fifteen seasons in the Arena Football League (AFL). High school years Bonner attended Azusa High School in Azusa, California and was a stude ...

. Sanders competed one-of-four passes for 30 yards and one touchdown in Week 9 at New York. He completed his only pass of the game for a 16-yard touchdown in Week 11 against Austin. Sanders made his first start of the season in Week 15 against Los Angeles for an injured Bonner to complete 22-of-37 passes for 266 yards with four touchdowns and two interceptions while also scoring three rushing touchdowns in the contest. He started his second game of the year at the San Jose SaberCats in Week 16 to complete 22-of-49 passes for 252 yards with four touchdowns and three interceptions.

Dallas Vigilantes

In 2010, Sanders signed with the Dallas Vigilantes.

Personal life

Sanders is now a part-time co-host on the High School Scoreboard show on 103.3 FM ESPN Radio in Dallas Tx. Home of the Michael Irvin Show, Galloway and Co. and GameNight w/ Choppy and Wally. Sanders also was the unnamed quarterback used on the Spike TV show "4th and Long."

References

External links

Profile at ArenaFan.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sanders, Chris 1977 births Living people Sportspeople from Flower Mound, Texas American football quarterbacks SMU Mustangs football players Chattanooga Mocs football players Roanoke Steam players Buffalo Destroyers players Manchester Wolves players Orlando Predators players Kansas City Brigade players Arizona Rattlers players Dallas Desperados players Dallas Vigilantes players Edward S. Marcus High School alumni