South Carolina’s TJ Sanders taken in the second round of the NFL Draft
A member of Shane Beamer’s first signing class at South Carolina is now headed to the NFL.
Defensive tackle TJ Sanders was drafted on Friday by the Buffalo Bills in the second round (No. 41 pick overall). Of note: Bills general manager Brandon Beane was in Columbia for South Carolina’s Pro Day in mid-March.
Sanders’ name being called comes just five years after the Marion High product committed to coach Will Muschamp, stayed true to the Gamecocks despite a coaching change and eventually became part of Beamer’s inaugural signing class.
He is the second member of that 2021 class to be drafted, joining cornerback Marcellous Dial, who was taken in the sixth round by the New England Patriots last year.
Sanders, a former three-star prospect out of Marion, elevated himself this past season. As a redshirt junior in a defensive tackle room that included Tonka Hemingway and Boogie Huntley, Sanders was the Gamecocks’ top run stuffer.
The 6-foot-5, 300-pounder racked up a career-high 50 tackles last season, adding 7 tackles for loss and 4 sacks. It was the perfect way to cap an incredibly-consistent South Carolina career.
After redshirting in 2021, Sanders played in a dozen games as a redshirt sophomore before elevating into the starting rotation in 2023, when he tallied a team-high 9.5 tackles for loss.
At his Pro Day in March, fresh off of participating at the NFL Combine, Sanders was able to really reflect on his career. Unlike so many of his NFL Draft peers, he had no dramatic college adversity. No serious injury. No venture into the transfer portal. Heck, his hometown was less than two hours away from USC’s campus.
But the process of Sanders transforming into an SEC football player and now an NFL draftee did not follow a normal path. Up until his junior year of high school, he’d hardly played football and certainly didn’t consider a future that included pads.
“I was a hooper. I wasn’t touching no football,” Sanders said at Pro Day. “One minute you think you are going to the NBA and the next thing you are doing things for the NFL. Crazy how your life can change in the blink of an eye. I am just thankful and taking it all in.”
There won’t be much time to let it sink in after Friday. Rookie minicamp starts in a few weeks.
This story was originally published April 25, 2025 at 7:52 PM.
