Mike Saunders

Saunders was one of the top running backs in the CFL in the 1990s in a career that spanned from 1992 to 1999.  Saunders was drafted in the tenth round (262nd overall) by the PIttsburgh Steelers in 1992 darft.  After his release by Pittsburgh, Saunders signed with the Saskatchewan Roughriders in October of 1992 and appeared in 4 games that season.Saunders was a true dual threat running back, able to rush the ball or catch it with equal ability.  While Saunder's rushing stats in that initial four games were hardly impressive (2.6 yard average), he caught 20 passes for 15.7 yard average which was enough for the Riders to bring him back in 1993.  Saunders caught 58 passes in hs first full season in 1993 and dramatically improved his rushing stats to 683 yards and a 5.1 yard average.  Saunders had his first 1000 yard season rushing the following year in 1994 as he ran for 1205 yards and caught 55 passes.  That performance earned Saunders a Western All-Star spot.  Saunders became a free agent in February of 1995 and went south to join the San Antonio Texans.  Saunders again ran for over a 1000 yards and added 47 receptions with a 15.1 yard average as he was named both a Southern and All Canandian All-Star in 1995.  With the folding of the American teams, Saunders fell on hard times for a couple of years.  He was drafted by Montreal in the dispersal draft where he was employed as a slotback with only one carry in four games and eight catches.  Montreal traded Saunders to Hamilton in September for future considerations and he bounced back to make 24 catches in 6 games.  Saunders was released during training camp in 1997 by Amilton and was picked up by Toronto.  After seven games with the Argos, Saunders was traded back to Saskatchewan in September for a pair of draft picks.  The return to the prairies seemed to revitalize Saunder's career as he ran for 596 yards in under half a season for the Riders in 1997 .  In a full season with the Riders in 1998, Saunders ran for 897 yards and set a personal best in receptions with 59  for another 670 yards.  I his final season, in 1999, Saunders just missed another 1000 yards season as he 971 yards and caught 36 passes dedspite missing four games.

Games Played and Rushing
Year Team GP TC Yds Avg TD Long
1992 SASK 4 21 54 2.6 0 17
1993 SASK 13 135 683 5.1 4 52
1994 SASK 17 234 1205 5.2 8 49
1995 SA 18 206 1030 5 8 45
1996 HAM 6 48 198 4.1 2 20
1996 MON 4 33 154 4.7 1 15
1997 SASK 8 131 586 4.5 5 36
1997 TOR 7 1 2 2 0 2
1998 SASK 17 160 897 5.6 5 46
1999 SASK 14 191 971 5.1 6 34
Receiving
Year Team Rec Yds Avg TD Long
1992 SASK 20 314 15.7 2 91
1993 SASK 58 612 10.6 1 43
1994 SASK 55 613 11.1 7 32
1995 SA 47 708 15.1 8 60
1996 HAM 24 274 11.4 2 50
1996 MON 8 75 9.4 0 16
1997 SASK 11 121 11 0 24
1997 TOR 14 173 12.4 3 27
1998 SASK 59 670 11.4 6 57
1999 SASK 36 348 9.7 4 35
Kickoff Returns
Year Team KOR Yds Avg TD Long
1992 SASK 13 267 20.5 0 34
1993 SASK 17 341 20.1 0 58
1994 SASK 1 29 29 0 29
1995 SA 1 18 18 0 18
1996 HAM 0 0 0 0 0
1996 MON 0 0 0 0 0
1997 SASK 0 0 0 0 0
1997 TOR 1 26 26 0 26
1998 SASK 3 53 17.1 0 26
1999 SASK 10 183 18.3 0 23
Punt Returns
Year Team PR Yds Avg TD Long
1992 SASK 11 104 9.5 0 40
1993 SASK 24 194 8.1 0 35
1994 SASK 15 112 7.5 0 34
1995 SA 0 0 0 0 0
1996 HAM 0 0 0 0 0
1996 MON 4 12 3 0 4
1997 SASK 0 0 0 0 0
1997 TOR 1 5 5 0 5
1998 SASK 0 0 0 0 0
1999 SASK 2 15 7.8 0 8
Fumbles
Year Team F FL
1992 SASK 3 2
1993 SASK 10 6
1994 SASK 8 8
1995 SA 5 1
1996 HAM 3 2
1996 MON 0 0
1997 SASK 0 0
1997 TOR 0 0
1998 SASK 2 2
1999 SASK 4 3
Tackles
Year Team T ST Total
1992 SASK 1 1 2
1993 SASK 2 1 3
1994 SASK 4 0 4
1995 SA 0 0 0
1996 HAM 3 0 3
1996 MON 0 0 0
1997 SASK 4 0 4
1997 TOR 0 1 0
1998 SASK 3 0 3
1999 SASK 1 0 1
Fumble Recoveries
Year Team FR Yds Avg TD Long OFR FF
1992 SASK 0 0 0 0 0 0
1993 SASK 0 0 0 0 0 1
1994 SASK 0 0 0 0 0 0
1995 SA 1 0 0 0 0 3
1996 HAM 0 0 0 0 0 0
1996 MON 0 0 0 0 0 0
1997 SASK 0 0 0 0 0 0
1997 TOR 0 0 0 0 0 0
1998 SASK 0 0 0 0 0 2
1999 SASK 0 0 0 0 0 1
Passing
Year Team PA PC % Yds TD Int
1992 SASK 0 0 0 0 0 0
1993 SASK 2 2 100 0 0 0
1994 SASK 0 0 0 0 0 0
1995 SA 0 0 0 0 0 0
1996 HAM 0 0 0 0 0 0
1996 MON 0 0 0 0 0 0
1997 SASK 0 0 0 0 0 0
1997 TOR 1 0 0 0 0 0
1998 SASK 0 0 0 0 0 0
1999 SASK 0 0 0 0 0 0