Twelve years have passed since Barry Sanders unexpectedly retired from football, but fans of the great running back now have a chance to see his second coming.
Barry Sanders Jr., son of the Hall of Fame running back, also is a gifted running back, and the high school senior has narrowed his list of college choices to Alabama, UCLA, Florida State and Oklahoma State, according to OK Blitz.
While the elder Sanders won a Heisman Trophy playing at Oklahoma State, Sanders Jr. does not feel obligated to follow in his father’s footsteps.
“I haven’t really felt much pressure, because my family hasn’t really been pressuring me,” Sanders told OK Blitz. “I think that when people start feeling the pressure, it’s because it’s coming from the family and the people you’re around. But nobody I’m really close with has been pressuring me into it, so I feel like I can go anywhere I want to.”
Alabama coach Nick Saban has intrigued Sanders with the Crimson Tide’s legacy of successful running backs, including Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram.
Still, Sanders doesn’t know where or when he will commit.
“That’s something I’ll have to think about,” he told the website. “I’ll go through the process and see who I want to visit, and go from there. I don’t know if I’ll make it before signing day or what, but I’m going to play it by ear.”
Sanders currently stars at Oklahoma’s Heritage Hall High School.
