Barry Sanders was born on July 16, 1968 in Wichita, Kansas. Although Sanders was never the most important player on the field, he always found a way to get the job done time and time again. With great balance and strength, he racked up yards at every imaginable level of football. And for this reason, he is considered by many people to be one of the best racers to ever play the game.

After a successful high school career, Sanders decided to take his game to Oklahoma State University. During his first two years with the Cowboys, he played behind star running back Thurman Thomas. But when it finally came his time, he was more than ready to take advantage of it. As a junior, he led the nation with 2,628 rushing yards and 39 touchdowns. This led to his winning the Heisman Trophy in 1988. Rather than stick around for another year, Sanders decided it was time to go to the next level. He declared for the NFL Draft and left college one of the greatest running backs of all time.

Sanders was selected by the Detroit Lions with the third pick out of the first round in the 1989 NFL Draft. In his first season he made an immediate impact on both the team and the league. He carried the ball 280 times for 1,470 yards. Additionally, he scored 14 touchdowns. Every year after that, he put up similar numbers. His best season was 1997 when he rushed for 2,053 yards on 335 carries. He also scored 11 touchdowns that season.

It came as a shock to the soccer world when Sanders decided to retire for good after the 1998 season. Although he was still racking up great stats, he decided it was time to quit the game. Sanders finished his career with 15,269 rushing yards and 99 touchdowns. Although Sanders didn’t stick around for long, he will always be known as one of the greats.