Jimmy Smith gives his observation of Rocket Sanders

Raheim ‘Rocket’ Sanders has been one of the SEC’s best backs over his two seasons at Arkansas. Now, as he comes into his junior year in Fayetteville, his running backs coach with the ‘Hogs, Jimmy Smith, sees a very different player than the one that he started with.

Smith spoke about Sanders and the Razorback’s other backs during a press conference a few days back. He said that Sanders is already clearly a different player considering his physical traits. Once you combine that with his competitive nature, he becomes even more of a problem for defenses that have to bring him down.

“Bigger, faster, stronger,” Smith said as he described Sanders at the moment. “I was kind of surprised because, honestly, we said a certain weight we wanted him to be at. I talked to him about it that, when you get to 235, you’ve got to lose muscle.”

“He’s in great condition,” continued Smith. “Rocket is one of those guys who competes every day like he’s an eighth-string or something like that. He competes all the time, he goes hard all the time.”

From there, Smith added that leadership qualities are starting to come out of his starting rusher. It’s an area that he says that Sanders has focused on considering his quieter nature but that it’s coming to him better considering how often his teammates are looking to him.

“That’s been something he’s been focusing on. Understanding that he’s a guy that’s going to be a leader for us,” Smith said. “He’s not a talkative person so it was kind of hard for him at first. But now he’s doing it because guys are looking to him for it. He has kind of taken on that role.”

Sanders posted team highs in rushing yards with 1,443 and rushing touchdowns with 10 in 2022. As far as the SEC, that placed him second in rushing yards, tied for fourth in touchdowns, and tied for first with an average of 6.5 yards per carry.

As he comes into his junior year, though, Smith sees a different player in more ways than one. That could pay major dividends for Arkansas on the ground, especially with him in the backfield next to KJ Jefferson.

 Sanders: Huggies deal special ‘because I have a little one’

Arkansas running back Raheim Sanders announced an NIL partnership with Huggies in February. For each pack of diapers or wipes purchased at Sam’s Club during the month, Huggies said it would donate a day’s worth of diapers to the National Diaper Bank Network.

At SEC Media Days, Sanders explained how a local diaper partnership led to the one with Huggies, in part because of a media interview. The partnerships have a personal meaning for Sanders, who’s the father of a young son.

“It grew big,” Sanders said. “With them, I didn’t even care about the money just to show that I’m willing to do that and it meant (something) different just because I have a little one.”

Sanders explained how the Huggies partnership materialized.

“That actually started off with a little diaper company in Fayetteville,” he said. “And they blessed me with the Huggies deal because I did a little interview. But it was a blessing because I can show people and tell people that you can do deals that can affect a lot of women that are pregnant.”

Sanders said being a father has helped him become a better leader.

“Just being a dad – definitely a (first-time) dad – you learn things,” Sanders said. “And just giving back to others in a way that teaches them some things that I learned as a dad.”