Ja'Tavion Sanders

Former tight end at Texas. 2023: 45 catches, 682 receiving yards, 2 TD.

TE · Texas · Jr.

6′4″ · 243 lb · Denton, TX

CFB Index 81 · #5 of 137 TEsMedium-low confidenceAll-Conf 1st teamCarolina — drafted 2024, Rd 4, Pick 1, #101 overall

Recruiting

5★

ATH recruit

No. 13 nationally · Signed with Texas

No college snaps yet.

His career numbers, season by season

The story

Former tight end at Texas. 2023: 45 catches, 682 receiving yards, 2 TD.

Signed as a 5-star recruit to Texas in 2021.
Drafted round 4 by the Carolina in 2024.

His career, year by year

How it ended

Three seasons at Texas, 1,295 receiving yards, a first-team All-Conference season (2022) — drafted at #101 overall by Carolina.

His career

He arrived as a blue-chip recruit and played like one.

The week the volume broke through — put up 114 yds at Alabama.Alabama · W 34-242023

2021

Signed with Texas5-star out of Denton Ryan

202213 games

The role got bigger.

All-Big 12first

202313 games

All-Big 12first

2024

Drafted by Carolinaround 4, pick 101

Career arc

Recruit

★★★★★

#13 national

CFB

College

Texas

2021–2023

NFL

NFL Draft

R4 · #101

Carolina · 2024

Trophy case · Confirmed honors

What the selectors said

2 honors · 1 category

🥈

ALL-BIG 12 · 1ST TEAM

All-Big 12 1st team (2023)

Coaching lineage · 2021–2023

1 coach

2021–2023

Steve Sarkisian

Texas

Played his entire career under Steve Sarkisian.

Where He Ended Up · NFL

CarolinaEntering 3rd NFL season

#101Rd 4 · Pick 1

CarolinaEntering 3rd NFL season

View college career stats ↓

2023 snapshot

Season context · Team result + system

3 seasons under Steve Sarkisian — 25-14 over that span.

2021Texas5-7HC: Steve Sarkisian · Run-leaning

2022Texas8-5HC: Steve Sarkisian · Run-leaning

2023Texas12-2HC: Steve Sarkisian · Balanced

Where this profile ranks vs the TE cohort

Box-score + play-by-play EPA percentiles

81All-Conference level #5 of 137?

Medium-low confidence12 metrics · season cumulative

Elite: yards / catch (85th percentile). Strength: rec yards (98th percentile). Concern: td rate (8th percentile).

Real play-by-play efficiency

Yards / catch#98 / 639 · 85th pct

15.7

Explosive rate#192 / 639 · 70th pct

17.5%

EPA / target#259 / 639 · 60th pct

0.83

Catch rate#370 / 639 · 41st pct

80.0%

TD rate#532 / 639 · 8th pct

0.0%

Box-score rates (7)

Rec yards#4 / 160 · 98th pct

682

Receptions#10 / 160 · 93rd pct

Yards / catch#17 / 160 · 89th pct

15.2

Long catch#28 / 160 · 81st pct

Rush yards#12 / 32 · 64th pct

Rec TDs#75 / 160 · 43rd pct

Rush TDs#13 / 32 · 31st pct

Season trend

Last seasonThis season

EPA / target

56th → 60th percentile

Explosive rate

52nd → 70th percentile

Catch rate

46th → 41st percentile

TD rate

60th → 8th percentile

Yards / catch

43rd → 85th percentile

Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season. Most bars are box-score rates; EPA / success-rate bars are computed from real play-by-play (offense only — no defensive EPA model exists yet).

Splits & context

Splits · Per-game

2023 season · 13 games

Home/Road · Season halves

Home vs Road

	REC/g	YDS/g	YPR	TD/g
Home7g	3.0	39.3	13.3	0.3
Road6g	4.0	67.8	16.6	0.0

First half vs Second half

	REC/g	YDS/g	YPR	TD/g
Weeks 1-76g	3.3	61.0	17.1	0.2
Weeks 8+7g	3.6	45.1	12.9	0.1

Supporting cast · Scheme

Staff and system around the player

2026 season

Head Coach

Steve Sarkisian

Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.

Awards

Player standing · 2023

All-Conference 1st team

First team in his league at the position.

our read the All-Conference 1st team honor is earned — and the box score backs it up emphatically: #5 of 137 FBS tight ends by CFB Index Score.2023 profile

Recognition

Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex

Production · CFB Index Score

81 · #5 of 137 TEs

Former five-star. Now #5 at the position.

Career stats

Season	Team
2023	Texas	45	682	15.2	2	--
2022	Texas	54	613	11.4	5	--
2021	Texas	--	--	--	--	--
Career		99	1,295	13.1	7	--

Signature game

SIGNATURE GAME · Week 2 · 2023

W 34–24

at Alabama

5 rec · 114 yds

With Q. Ewers — 349 yds · 3 TD · 0 INT · QBR 89.4 · 11 rush yds (3 car) · R. Sanborn — 50 AVG · 1 IN 20 · 56 LONG

Signature plays

Signature plays · top plays by |EPA|

The plays that mattered most

fact

Week 4 · Baylor · 2&6 · Q3 · EPA +3.49Quinn Ewers pass complete to Ja'Tavion Sanders for 49 yds to the BAY 21 for a 1ST down
Week 1 · Rice · 1&10 · Q3 · EPA +3.41Ja'Tavion Sanders 44 Yd pass from Quinn Ewers (Bert Auburn Kick)
Week 14 · Oklahoma State · 3&4 · Q1 · EPA +3.18Ja'Tavion Sanders 24 Yd pass from Quinn Ewers (Bert Auburn Kick)
Week 4 · Baylor · 3&10 · Q1 · EPA +2.92Quinn Ewers pass complete to Ja'Tavion Sanders for 11 yds to the BAY 47 for a 1ST down
Week 14 · Oklahoma State · 4&1 · Q4 · EPA +2.60Quinn Ewers pass complete to Ja'Tavion Sanders for 8 yds to the OKST 43 for a 1ST down
Week 2 · Alabama · 3&5 · Q2 · EPA +2.57Quinn Ewers pass complete to Ja'Tavion Sanders for 18 yds to the TEX 45 for a 1ST down
Week 12 · Iowa State · 3&13 · Q2 · EPA +2.48Quinn Ewers pass complete to Ja'Tavion Sanders for 17 yds to the TEX 40 for a 1ST down
Week 10 · Kansas State · 4&4 · Q4 · EPA +2.44Maalik Murphy pass complete to Ja'Tavion Sanders for 16 yds to the KSU 21 for a 1ST down
Week 1 · Washington · 2&10 · Q2 · EPA +2.35Quinn Ewers pass complete to Ja'Tavion Sanders for 14 yds to the WASH 47 for a 1ST down
Week 2 · Alabama · 1&10 · Q4 · EPA +2.27Quinn Ewers pass complete to Ja'Tavion Sanders for 50 yds to the ALA 7 for a 1ST down

Game log

Game log · Week-by-week

2023 season · 13 games

Box score · CFBD

Wk	Opp	REC	YDS	AVG	TD	LONG	Note
Wk 1	W 37-10vs Rice	2	44	22.0	1	44
Wk 2	W 34-24@ Alabama	5	114	22.8	0	50	Season-high 114 yds
Wk 4	W 38-6@ Baylor	5	110	22.0	0	49
Wk 5	W 40-14vs Kansas	1	10	10.0	0	10
Wk 6	L 30-34vs Oklahoma	1	13	13.0	0	13
Wk 8	W 31-24@ Houston	2	29	14.5	0	23
Wk 9	W 35-6vs BYU	4	37	9.3	0	20
Wk 10	W 33-30vs Kansas State	2	21	10.5	0	16
Wk 11	W 29-26@ TCU	4	47	11.8	0	19
Wk 12	W 26-16@ Iowa State	2	32	16.0	0	17
Wk 13	W 57-7vs Texas Tech	3	45	15.0	0	23
Wk 14	W 49-21vs Oklahoma State	8	105	13.1	1	26
Bowl	L 31-37@ Washington	6	75	12.5	0	21
Total		45	682	14.8	2	50

Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology

Ja'Tavion Sanders

2021

202213 games

202313 games

2024

2023 snapshot

Splits & context

Awards

All-Conference 1st team

Career stats

Signature game

Signature plays

Game log

How he plays

DNA match

Move TE

Players who play like Ja'Tavion Sanders

Heisman trajectory

#192