Barry J. Sanders chooses Stanford

By Mitch Stephens Jan 7, 2012, 10:21am

Son of Hall of Fame running backs keeps his word and makes his much-anticipated pick on national television Saturday.

Barry J. Sanders announced his college choice Saturday to Stanford.
Barry J. Sanders announced his college choice Saturday to Stanford.
Courtesy of U.S. Army
Heritage Hall (Oklahoma City) running back Barry J. Sanders, son of Hall of Famer Barry Sanders, kept his word Saturday and announced his college decision at the U.S. Army All-American Bowl.

After much speculation and anticipation, Sanders picked Stanford.

The 5-foot-11, 195-pound Sanders is the 15th best prospect nationally regardless of position, according to MaxPreps. He rushed for 1,343 yards and scored 24 touchdowns this past season in leading the Chargers to the Class 3A semifinals.

Word leaked on Thursday that Sanders had picked Stanford, but the Heritage Hall star would neither confirm or deny the report from the Tulsa World.

"I've been hearing that speculation through this whole process, so that doesn't surprise me," Sanders told the newspaper on Thursday. "But I told people I would announce on Saturday, and that's what I'm gonna do."



And he did.

His finalist going into Saturday were Stanford, Oklahoma State, Florida State and Alabama.

National Signing Day is Feb. 1 and verbal commits are not binding. Watch more videos of Heritage Hall football