Demond Sanders

Demond Sanders was born on February 24, 1981 in Erie, Pennsylvania. He was the 7th child out of 8. His first name was rarely ever used, his mother, Jean, always called him "Boy-Boy" when he was a toddler. She then shortened it to Bob as he got older. The Sanders were a very respectable and hardworking family. His father, Marion, was strict but good father. Bob was very a athletic child. He would do flips off park benches or boxes. His father one day took a camcorder to work and had a coworker video tape him do his job. He then went home and showed the kids the video to show them that he wanted them to be better than him when they grew up.

Fred Biletnikoff (google.com)

At that time, in most towns in Pennsylvania, the number one sport was football. Erie Pennsylvania was also home to Fred Biletnikoff, Hall of Fame wide receiver for the Oakland Raiders, who attended Technical Memorial High School. Bob was very different from Fred though, he was built different and also played the game different. Most people thought Bob was short and undersized, but when Bob played Pop Warner football, nobody could ever tackle him and when he was doing the tackling, nobody could get by him.

Bob was first noticed for his football skills in the 6th grade. He was a backup running back for McKinley Middle School. He had tackled the starter in practice so hard that he could not play for 2 weeks. Bob was then the starter. Bob then enrolled at Cathedral Prep, he had hopes that one day his name would be on the school's Pro Football Alumni. The names that are on this list are Mike McCoy, who was a pro bowl lineman for the Green Bay Packers. Another name that was on this list was Mark Stepnoski, who won 2 super bowls in the 90's with the Dallas Cowboys. Bob was named as a starter his freshman year with the Ramblers. He would then have a great high school career ending his senior year with 1,100 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns. He also had spectacular plays on defense with his big hits. He led them to the state finals but sadly lost there.

#33 Bob Sanders, University of Iowa (google.com)

Bob was dreaming about going to a Big Ten school. His dream came true when the University of Iowa offered him a full scholarship. They told Bob that he would be nothing but a defensive player. Bob then promised all of his high school teammates that he would start freshman year and make an all-american team. Bob definitely made starting squad as a free saftey, which would be his position his whole career. Bobs first game he started in was against Wisconsin, he had 12 tackles and was on the All-Big Ten list. In 2001, Bob was regocnized as a bone crushing tackler. He was named most valuable player on the Iowa's defense. Bob Sanders best game was against their rival, the Indiana Hoosiers and Antwwan Randel El, where he had 25 tackles. That season Bob had led his team to a post season appearance where they beat the Texas Tech Red Raiders at the Alamo Bowl, 19-16. In 2002 the Iowa Hawkeyes went 11-1 with their only loss against Iowa State. They went to the Orange Bowl to face USC, one of the toughest football teams in the nation, where they would get beat. They would finish 8th in the nation that season. Bobs final game at home was facing Minnesota where he had 16 tackles and 3 forced fumbles. He led the Hawkeyes to the Outback Bowl where they beat Florida 37-17.

Bob Sanders after Super Bowl XLI. (google.com)

Bob now had his sights on the NFL, he was not picked up until the second round, where the Indianapolis Colts picked him up. Most teams questioned Bobs size but not Tony Dungy, the Colts head coach, he knew Bob would fit right in with the Colts small, but quick defense. Soon after being drafted, Bob had a knee and foot injury. He then was put on the injury reserve list. By November, Bob had been added to the starting lineup and he had his best game against the Houston Texans, with 9 solo tackles. In 2005, Bob's healthiest year, he recorded 118 tackles. One game in December, he had 20 tackles against the San Diego Chargers. However, in the 2006 season Bob tore his ACL and was out for most of the season. This was very disapointing for Bob who was a very important asset to the Colts. When Bob came back in the post season of the 2006 season he led the Colts to a Super Bowl Championship where they beat the Chicago Bears 29-17.

After that Super Bowl win Bob could not stay healthy and was injured most of the time. The Colts finally let him go in Feburary of 2011. Bob Sanders is my hero because I know what it is like to tear an ACL playing football, and he was back that same season he tore his. That is why Bob Sanders is my hero.