Oklahoma kicker Tate Sandell gave college football one of its most unlikely double features of the season — a record-setting performance and a viral fashion debate, both in the span of a single Saturday night in Knoxville.
The junior calmly drilled field goals from 55, 51, 40 and 55 yards, while nailing all three PATs, accounting for 15 of the Sooners’ points in a win that reignited their SEC hopes.
By night’s end, Sandell had set or tied eight FBS, school, or stadium records, and earned both SEC Special Teams Player of the Week and Lou Groza Award Star of the Week honors.
But the story that traveled the fastest wasn’t about numbers, it was about the shorts or short pants.
Sandell’s leg strength was historic, but his uniform pants were historically short. Screenshots flooded social media. One fan joked he looked “ready to kick or run the 400-meter relay.
Meanwhile, Deion Sanders, many miles away in Boulder, happened to spend part of his weekly Colorado coaches show talking about that very thing.
“You got kids trying to go out there with biker shorts. What is wrong with y’all?” Sanders said. “You don’t see Marshall Faulk with his thighs out — and he made it to the mountaintop. He’s got a jacket (HOF) that he didn’t buy…I have too much respect for the game. I’m sorry, I really do.”
That line, respect for the game, has become something of a mantra for Sanders this season. It’s not about the fabric, it’s about the focus. To him, the uniform is sacred. It’s a symbol of preparation, discipline, and gratitude.
Sandell’s look might have broken from tradition, but his performance embodied the spirit Sanders preaches. Every kick was deliberate, rehearsed, confident. No flair, no hesitation, just repetition meeting opportunity. That.
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“Our guys don’t do that. Our guys don’t do that. We respect [the uniform] and coaches, we respect it during games.”
Ultimately, the shorts got the clicks, but the leg earned the respect. And somewhere, even if he’d never admit it, Coach Prime had to appreciate that part — the old-school discipline dressed up in new-school style.
Because when you hit four field goals from fifty or beyond, the inseam doesn’t matter. The respect does.
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