Spencer Sanders kicked off the 2022 college football season with a bang, playing one of the best games of his career in a 58-44 win at home against the Central Michigan Chippewas. His performance was so outstanding that the Big 12 announced him as the conference’s Offensive Player of the Week for Week 1.
Against the Chippewas, Sanders racked up 406 passing yards completing 28-of-41 attempts for 4 touchdowns while adding another 57 yards on the ground and 2 rushing touchdowns. His numbers made him just the second player in Big 12 history to have 300 passing yards, 3 passing touchdowns, and 2 rushing touchdowns in a single half, joining Patrick Mahomes.
Perhaps the most impressive part of his day was how Sanders limited the mistakes. His 68.3% completion rate is higher than his career average, and he threw no interceptions. He did have an interception overturned due to an offsides penalty by Central Michigan, but in general, he took really good care of the ball. While the Cowboys are definitely going to face tougher defenses than Central Michigan’s, this was a good starting point for Oklahoma State, and if Sanders’s performance was any indication of how his season is going to go, I suspect this won’t be his last Big 12 award.