Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/311901
MURPHY'S LAW DAN MURPHY N otre Dame Stadium may host the only college football games next year where you'll find more autograph seekers combing the par- ents' seating section than the sidelines. Pretty soon the Irish program will need to purchase some velvet ropes for family meetings with South Bend becoming an increasingly popular landing spot for celebrity spawn. The latest high school prospect to commit to the team — wide receiver C.J. Sanders from Sherman Oaks, Calif. — should feel right at home. Sanders is the son of former NFL wide receiver Chris Sanders, who played for the Tennessee Titans' 1999 AFC championship team after a successful college career at Ohio State. Sanders has already gained a mea- sure of fame on his own as a childhood actor. He played the role of a young Ray Charles along with Jamie Foxx in the 2004 film "Ray" among other major acting credits. His poise and comfort in the spot- light are immediately apparent, which may explain why so many others who have grown up in that atmosphere are coming to Notre Dame and succeed- ing. At a program that is always sub- ject to national media scrutiny, having been there before (or at least being raised by someone who has) can be a significant head start. "I think they feel more comfort- able in that type of setting. I don't think anything shakes them," said of- fensive coordinator Mike Denbrock, who will be Sanders' position coach when he makes it to campus in 2015. "At their core, they've been around it. If your dad has played against the best in NBA history or your dad has hit home runs against the best pitchers in history, you've kind of lived in that environment a little bit. "Nothing is too big for them." Denbrock, if he wanted to, could put a full complement of wide receivers born to professional athlete fathers on The Famous Fathers Club Former NBA star David Robinson, whose son Corey plays wide receiver for Notre Dame, is one of sev- eral famous dads now associated with the Irish football program. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA