The greatest single season in college football history — 2,628 yards and 39 touchdowns at Oklahoma State in 1988.
Barry Sanders was born in Wichita, Kansas in 1968. He arrived at Oklahoma State as a backup and became the most dominant single-season performer in college football history. His 1988 season is the statistical standard against which all others are measured: 2,628 rushing yards — the NCAA single-season record — and 39 touchdowns across 11 games. He averaged 238.9 rushing yards per game — a number that defies comprehension. He won the Heisman Trophy in 1988 by an overwhelming margin. He set or tied 34 NCAA records in that single season. He was the consensus All-American running back. He was selected by the Detroit Lions in the first round of the 1989 NFL Draft and went on to become one of the greatest professional running backs in NFL history — his Oklahoma State season establishing the promise that his NFL career largely fulfilled. His 1988 season remains the consensus greatest individual season by a running back in college football history. The remarkable thing about his Oklahoma State career is that before 1988 he was not even the starter — making his single-season eruption all the more extraordinary.
Heisman Trophy (1988)
Career Honours
- Heisman Trophy (1988)
- NCAA rushing record (2,628 yards)
- Big Eight title
- Consensus All-American