Devy Digest: Raheim Sanders

Andy Pham discusses whether he thinks South Carolina running back Raheim Sanders will be able to bounce back this season!

South Carolina Gamecocks
Position: Running Back
Raheim Sanders
6’2” 225 lbs
Age: 22
Draft Eligible: 2024

Stats

Who is Raheim Sanders?

​​Sanders was a three-star in the composites and attended Rockledge High in Rockledge, Florida. The services categorized Sanders as an athlete due to playing running back, wide receiver, and linebacker. He was also a multi-sport athlete, spent time on the basketball team, and competed in track and field.  As a Senior, Sanders rushed for 317 yards with four touchdowns and added 24 receptions for 391 yards, an additional four touchdowns, 237 return yards, and a touchdown as a returner. Sanders has a verified 11.31 sec in the 100-meter dash.

Sanders held 31 offers and chose to attend Arkansas, where he made a splash as a true freshman rushing for 578 yards and hauling in 11 receptions, an essential part in the rotation for the running back room, and parlayed that into being the featured back in 2022 when he was a sophomore and broke out and became a sensation.

In the 2023 offseason, it has been theorized that Arkansas's strength and conditioning program would ask Sanders to put on 20 pounds, and he bulked up to 242 pounds. We saw his agility and quickness suffer with the extra weight. Sanders was sluggish, had too much weight on his frame, and was injured for most of the season. It was a lost season for Sanders, and he would spend time away from the program to rehab his knee in Dallas; when the season ended, he would enter the portal and further the theory that the added weight gain was not his choice.

Sanders would stay in the SEC and chose to attend South Carolina and, this offseason, has continued to rehab to be at full strength by the start of the season. Sanders has dropped the added weight and has come in at a reported 225lbs.

We’ve seen the greatness that has been Rocket Sanders when he rushed for nearly 1,500 yards and added 27 receptions in the 2022 season to the absolute floor this past season when he looked slot, out of shape, and lost all his lateral quickness and agility that we have known Sanders to possess. In his final season, Sanders looks to recoup some name recognition and stand atop a potentially deep running back group for the 2025 NFL Draft.

Strengths

Sanders is a polarizing prospect with great power and speed. Not only straight-line speed but the lateral quickness at his size to be an early day two draft pick. Sanders gets up to full speed within strides and has the elusiveness to make defenders miss in a phone booth and the power to bulldoze a defender. Sanders has been clocked at 21mph when healthy and at 225lbs. The combination of power and finesse made Sanders a name all college football fans loved. Sanders has good hands and is a natural in the receiving game as a former receiver. Sanders came out of High School at around 212lbs. Sanders put on 10-13 pounds and got up to 225lbs, which did not hinder his traits. Sanders is looking to bounce back as a Senior, and South Carolina is an interesting spot. At first glance, you’d want Sanders to go to a better situation where he can be showcased and have weapons around him. South Carolina has a young quarterback at the helm, a quarterback's best friend, who is a good run game, and Sanders has a chance to elevate his stock now that he’s back down to 225lbs and showcase his talents again. 2023 was a forgettable season, and Sanders has every right to recoup his value as one of the best running backs in college football.

Improvements/Concerns

Sanders was hurt for essentially all of last year due to the added weight. The weight gain isn’t the concern; it’s the knee injury. Sanders was held out of spring practices to allow him to continue to heal from his knee injury. The fact that he wasn’t available in the spring is a concern. Could Sanders be playing catchup this summer and not be fully ready by week one? The weight gain isn’t a concern as the Arkansas strength and conditioning program advised Sanders to gain the weight. When he was 240lbs, it was all muscle; it wasn’t bad weight. Sanders is now back down to his correct playing weight, but if he is limited in fall camp, we might not see the 2022 version.

South Carolina also historically rotates its backfield, and it grabbed multiple running backs in the portal. It still has viable assets on the roster from the past season. The concern is that they will continue to rotate players at the position. Arkansas had a horrendous offensive line, and while South Carolina has a better projected offensive line than Arkansas, it’s not by much. The offensive system for South Carolina will shift, and if teams stack the box and force them to pass, Sanders could struggle to find his footing and garner the opportunities he’ll need to be effective.

Beyond the Numbers