Charles Alvin Sanders was an American professional football player who was a tight end for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League from 1968 to 1977.
17 Facts About Charlie Sanders
2.
Charlie Sanders was chosen for the NFL's 1970s All-Decade Team and voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2007.
3.
Charlie Sanders attended James B Dudley High School in Greensboro, North Carolina, where he played for the football, basketball, and baseball teams.
4.
Charlie Sanders attended the University of Minnesota, where he played college football for the Golden Gophers.
5.
Charlie Sanders had 336 career receptions for 4,817 yards and 31 touchdowns.
6.
Charlie Sanders was chosen for the Pro Bowl seven times.
7.
Charlie Sanders was the only rookie to be named to the 1969 Pro Bowl, following a season where he had forty receptions for 533 yards.
8.
Charlie Sanders was selected as a first-team All-Pro for the 1970 and 1971 seasons, receiving the most votes of any player in both years.
9.
Charlie Sanders was named to the NFL 1970s All-Decade Team as selected by voters of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
10.
Charlie Sanders was inducted into the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in 1997, and the Minnesota M Club Hall of Fame in 2013.
11.
In 2008, Charlie Sanders was chosen as a member of the Lions' 75th Anniversary All Time Team.
12.
Charlie Sanders served as a color analyst on Lions radio broadcasts from 1983 through 1988, worked with the team as an assistant coach in charge of wide receivers from 1989 to 1996, returned to perform radio broadcasts in 1997, and then joined the Lions' front office as a scout.
13.
Charlie Sanders became the team's assistant director of pro personnel in 2000, and held the role until his death.
14.
Charlie Sanders created The Charlie Sanders Foundation in 2007, which provided two college scholarships per year for students from Oakland County, Monroe, Michigan and his home state of North Carolina.
15.
Charlie Sanders has nine children Mia, Charese, Mary Jo, Georgianna jr, Charlie Sanders jr, Nathalie, Talissa, Wayne and Jordan.
16.
Charlie Sanders developed a malignant tumor behind his right knee, which was discovered while he was undergoing knee replacement surgery.
17.
Charlie Sanders underwent chemotherapy, but died on July 2,2015 in Royal Oak, Michigan from cancer.