Short-yardage / goal-line · enumeration
Who gets the tough yard
4/26Inside-5 share
4 of the team's 26 inside-the-5 carries (15.4%).
Eli Sanders
Eli Sanders is a running back who has not played this season; the last season with a stat line was 2025, at USC.
Sanders does a little of everything without one standout trait. The five seasons span three programs and three head coaches: Matt Campbell, Bronco Mendenhall and Lincoln Riley. The first one came in 2024: All-Mountain West. One game to point at: 84 rushing yards and 17 receiving yards against Michigan State — Week 4, 2025.
Style of play
Style of play
Play style
Plays within the scheme — consistent production without a dominant dimension.
Similar players
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Where to follow
Career stats
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | USC | 44 | 258 | 5.9 | 2 | 20 |
| 2024 | New Mexico | 147 | 1,064 | 7.2 | 9 | 75 |
| 2023 | Iowa State | 102 | 477 | 4.7 | 4 | 29 |
| 2022 | Iowa State | 48 | 187 | 3.9 | 0 | 43 |
| 2021 | Iowa State | 9 | 29 | 3.2 | 0 | 11 |
| Career | 350 | 2,015 | 5.8 | 15 | 75 |
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | USC | 8 | 126 | 15.8 | 1 | 73 |
| 2024 | New Mexico | 15 | 134 | 8.9 | 0 | 31 |
| 2023 | Iowa State | 5 | 43 | 8.6 | 1 | 14 |
| 2022 | Iowa State | 7 | 51 | 7.3 | 0 | 15 |
| 2021 | Iowa State | 3 | 41 | 13.7 | 0 | 19 |
| Career | 38 | 395 | 10.4 | 2 | 73 |
Game log
Game log · Week-by-week
2025 season · 6 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 73-13vs Missouri State | 5 | 33 | 6.6 | 0 | 17 | |
| Wk 2 | W 59-20vs Georgia Southern | 8 | 52 | 6.5 | 2 | 19 | |
| Wk 3 | W 33-17@ Purdue | 10 | 75 | 7.5 | 0 | 20 | |
| Wk 4 | W 45-31vs Michigan State | 13 | 84 | 6.5 | 0 | 18 | Season-high 84 yds |
| Wk 5 | L 32-34@ No. 23 Illinois | 8 | 14 | 1.8 | 0 | 6 | |
| Wk 7 | W 31-13vs No. 15 Michigan | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Total | 44 | 258 | 5.9 | 2 | 20 |
Signature game
Week 2 · 2025
W 59-20
Signature plays
The plays that mattered most
- Week 1 · Missouri State · 2nd and 10 · Q2 · EPA +6.70Jayden Maiava pass complete to Eli Sanders for 73 yds for a TD (Ryon Sayeri KICK)
- Week 4 · Michigan State · 2nd and 10 · Q1 · EPA +2.52Eli Sanders run for 18 yds to the MSU 40 for a
- Week 2 · Georgia Southern · 2nd and 5 · Q4 · EPA +2.44Eli Sanders run for 5 yds for a TD (Ryon Sayeri KICK)
- Week 3 · Purdue · 3rd and 12 · Q2 · EPA +1.63Eli Sanders run for 20 yds to the USC 30 for a
- Week 5 · Illinois · 1st and 10 · Q2 · EPA −1.47Eli Sanders run for a loss of 6 yards to the USC 25
- Week 2 · Georgia Southern · 1st and 10 · Q1 · EPA +1.43Jayden Maiava pass complete to Eli Sanders for 18 yds to the USC 38 for a
4 more plays
- Week 4 · Michigan State · 1st and 10 · Q1 · EPA +1.34Eli Sanders run for 16 yds to the MSU 44 for a
- Week 1 · Missouri State · 2nd and 7 · Q1 · EPA +1.33Eli Sanders run for 17 yds to the MOST 3 for a
- Week 2 · Georgia Southern · 1st and 10 · Q1 · EPA +1.28Eli Sanders run for 19 yds to the USC 34 for a
- Week 1 · Missouri State · 1st and 10 · Q1 · EPA +1.23Eli Sanders run for 9 yds to the MOST 46
Rushing profile
Rush profile · Shape, efficiency, and ball security
How he gets his yards, and how often it works
43 of 44 carries matched to play-by-play
Success rate
54%43 carriesStuffed
0 or fewer yds14%of carries
6 carries
Grind
1–3 yds30%of carries
13 carries
Chunk
4–9 yds35%of carries
15 carries
Explosive
10+ yds21%of carries
9 carries
2 of 4 (50%) scored from inside the 5-yard line
5.9 yds/carry on 44 carries · 21% explosive (10+ yds) · 54% success rate.
Teams and coaches
2021Iowa State7-6HC: Matt Campbell · Balanced, fast tempo
2022Iowa State4-8HC: Matt Campbell · Pass-leaning
2023Iowa State7-6HC: Matt Campbell · Balanced, slow tempo
2024New Mexico5-7HC: Bronco Mendenhall · Run-leaning
2025USC9-4HC: Lincoln Riley · Balanced
Our ratings
Splits
Home and road splits, scheme and staff
Splits · Per-game
2025 season · 6 games
Home vs Road
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home4g | 42.2 | 6.5 | 0.5 |
| Road2g | 44.5 | 4.7 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 43.0 | 5.8 | 0.3 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Lincoln Riley
Pass share
50.4%
420 pass / 414 run
Plays / game
64.2
13 games
Team sack rate
2.9%
421 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced.
Awards
Player standing · 2025
44 carries and 8 catches in 6 games
About as many touches a game as a typical FBS running back who plays every week.
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Five seasons, three schools
- 2025 USC RileyYear 5 · 6 games
- Dec 2024 Entered the transfer portalNew Mexico to USC
- 2024 New Mexico MendenhallYear 4 · 12 gamesAll-conference
- Dec 2023 Entered the transfer portalIowa State to New Mexico
- 2023 Iowa State CampbellYear 3 · 9 games
- 2022 Iowa State CampbellYear 2 · 8 games
- 2021 Iowa State CampbellYear 1 · 3 games
- High school ChandlerChandler, AZ · Class of 2021Three-star, No. 551 in the 2021 class. Signed with Iowa State.Also from Chandler: Kyion Grayes (California), A'Mauri Washington (Oregon), Jacob Conover (Utah State) and 11 more.
Moves
- Transferred from Iowa State to New Mexico, Dec 4, 2023.
- Transferred from New Mexico to USC, Dec 18, 2024.
Played for three programs.
2021 3 games
- Signed with Iowa StateThree-star, out of Chandler
2024 12 games
The role got bigger.
- Transferred to New Mexicofrom Iowa State
- All-Mountain Westhonorable mention
2025 6 games
The snaps went the other way.
- Transferred to USCfrom New Mexico
Trophy case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
ALL-MOUNTAIN WEST
All-Mountain West mention (2024)
Coaching lineage · 2021–2025
3 coachesPlayed for 3 head coaches at 3 schools: Matt Campbell, Bronco Mendenhall and Lincoln Riley.