Naval Academy Athletics

•    At Navy: Has played in 29 games in his career, including making 4 starts (4 Jr) ... enters the fall second on the depth chart at raider ... has earned 3 varsity letters.

•    2023: A starter in 4 of the 11 games in which he played ... contributed 18 tackles on the year ... helped lead Navy to a 10-0 win over East Carolina and its third shutout of the season which is the most in the FBS this season ... it’s the first time Navy has recorded 3 shutouts in a season since 1978 when the Mids shut out 4 teams (Virginia, Connecticut, William & Mary, Army) ... it also marked the 4th team Navy held without a touchdown this season (Wagner 0 pts, Charlotte 0 pts, UAB 2FGs, ECU 0 pts) ... held the Pirates to just 189 yards of total offense, the fewest by a Navy opponent this season ... the 6 points scored by UAB were its fewest since dropping a 49-6 decision to Florida Atlantic on Dec. 7, 2019 ... that was also the last time the Blazers did not score a touchdown ... chipped in a pair of tackles against UAB ... part of a defensive effort that held the nation’s leader in rushing, Air Force (334.2 yds/gm), to just 137 yards, while also holding the Falcons to just 1 of 13 (.077) on third downs after coming into the game #1 in the country (.594) ... Navy’s defense recorded its second shutout of the season with a 14-0 win over Charlotte ... the Mids held the 49ers to just 265 yards of total offense (123R/142P), while Navy posted 7 tackles for loss, 4 sacks, broke up 6 passes and force 3 turnovers (2 INT, 1 fumble) ... chipped in a pair of tackles against Charlotte ... sat out the North Texas game due to injury ... the defense held USF quarterback Byrum Brown (ranked #1 among QB’s in yards per game at 87.8) to -27 yards on the ground, but gave up 338 yards and 3 TDs through the air ... recorded a pair of tackles against the Bulls ... chipped in a tackle at Memphis in the AAC opener ... part of a defensive unit that held Wagner scoreless, as Navy produced its first shutout since defeating Army 34-0 on Dec. 6, 2008 ... it was also the Mids’ first shutout at home since beating Lafayette 7-0 on Oct. 15, 1994 ... produced a career-best 6 tackles against the Seahawks ... made his first-collegiate start in the Mids’ opener against Notre Dame where he contributed 3 tackles.

•    2022: A member of special teams, he appeared in all 12 games ... contributed a tackle seeing extensive time on defense against Temple ... Navy’s defense held Temple to just 20 yards rushing, the third time in 2022 Navy has held an opponent to 25 or fewer yards rushing (13 by Delaware, 25 by Tulsa) ... despite Temple allowing just 4 sacks all year, Navy sacked the Owls 4 times ... Navy’s defense also forced Temple to punt 7 times, tying (Delaware) for the most by an opponent in 2022.

• 2021: A member of special teams, he saw action in 6 games, including each of the last 4 ... made his collegiate debut in the opener against Marshall.

• High School / Personal: A 2020 graduate of Silverdale Baptist Academy in Chattanooga, Tenn., Sanders attended the Naval Academy Prep School during the 2020-21 academic year ... a two-sport athlete who earned letters in basketball (4) and football (4) ... received 2019 best of prep honors (city wide) ... earned 2019-20 all-district honors in basketball ... member of the National Honor Society ... son of Scott and MaryBeth Sanders ... majoring in quantitative economics.