Former Notre Dame WR C.J. Sanders set for graduate transfer to SMU

{child_flags:featured}Sanders sets course for SMU

{child_byline}By Mike Vorel

South Bend Tribune

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C.J. Sanders is headed south.

The 5-foot-8, 181-pound wide receiver — who opted to pursue a graduate transfer from Notre Dame this offseason — will spend his final collegiate season at SMU, his mother — Stacey McCall-Harris — confirmed to the Tribune on Tuesday.

In 38 career games, the Granada Hills, Calif., native caught 26 passes for 293 yards and two touchdowns, with 24 of those passes coming in his sophomore season in 2016. The majority of his production came on special teams, however, where the elusive Sanders returned three kicks and one punt for touchdowns in his three seasons in South Bend.

Sanders’ production dipped in 2017, as the consensus four-star recruit caught just one pass for zero yards and failed to reach the end zone as an Irish returner. He was overtaken on the Irish depth chart by similarly shifty wide receivers like Chris Finke and Michael Young.

With the additional departures of Equanimeous St. Brown (NFL Draft) and Kevin Stepherson (dismissal), Notre Dame’s wide receiver corps returns just 51 catches, 775 receiving yards and five touchdowns from the 2017 season this fall.

Sanders has one season of collegiate eligibility remaining.

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