Trey Sanders reveals how his car accident impacted perception of football

Alabama running back Trey Sanders, a former five-star recruit in the On3 Consensus Rankings, suffered a serious car accident which left his football future in question during the 2020 season. After receiving support from head coach Nick Saban and the rest of the Crimson Tide, the junior looks to make an impact in 2022 both on the field and off the field.

During player availability this week, Trey Sanders met with reporters to discuss how the car accident provided him with a new perception of football and helped him find his calling in life away from the field.

“You appreciate everything a whole lot more,” said Sanders. “I say that – since I’ve been going through this process of not playing football – I actually learned a lot about myself outside of football. I realized what I want to do one day after I’m done playing the game. And hopefully, when I’m done playing football, I’m able to do the same thing I was when I was playing the game: inspiring people. That’s the main outlook I’ve had the past couple years.”

Sanders ran for 134 yards on 72 attempts for Alabama in 2021, playing mostly with the second-team unit, lining up in games only during the final minutes of blowout wins. The Florida native looks to expand on that role tremendously now that he is healthy and back on the field entering his redshirt junior season.

Trey Sanders on Nick Saban

Trey Sanders also expressed his appreciation to Nick Saban for his role in his recovery and support throughout the process. Despite questions about his recovery for an extended period, the coaching staff never gave up on his healthy return.

The crash was Sanders’ second major injury at Alabama, the other coming in the preseason of 2019 when he suffered a season-ending foot injury. Still, Saban worked with him consistently.

“I think Coach Saban was the main person who kept me going throughout that process because there were those times when I felt like I couldn’t do it,” Sanders said. “I wasn’t able to go out there and practice and Coach Saban called me into meeting and he’ll talk to me, and he gave me hope on the future.

“It gave me hope, and just gave me a better outlook on how to come out of my injury and come out of my car wreck, so it’s helped me a lot.”