It’s become almost the standard for juniors to forgo their senior season and head to the NFL. But did you know former Oklahoma State running back Barry Sanders was one of the pioneers of this?
The most significant development in the college-to-NFL pipeline in the 1980s came in 1989, when Sanders decided to jump from Oklahoma State to the NFL after a record-setting junior season in 1988.
The NFL said it was making an exception for Sanders, who was drafted No. 3 overall by the Detroit Lions and went on to a Hall of Fame career, but in reality it permanently opened the door to underclassmen.