Christian McCaffrey became one of the best running backs in the NFL, a surprise to no one who watched his career up to that point. But where did that elite play begin? And where did he go to college? We look at how McCaffrey became a star football player.
Christian McCaffrey’s Legacy Begins at Stanford
In a way, McCaffrey was destined to go to Stanford. His parents, Ed and Lisa McCaffrey, were both athletes with the Cardinal in their day. The former four-star recruit out of Littleton, Colorado, had 22 offers coming out of high school, but they mostly came from schools out West.
McCaffrey saw the field in 12 games as a freshman, running for 300 yards while catching 17 passes for 251 yards and two touchdowns. It was a crowded Cardinal backfield in 2014, but that quickly changed in 2015 thanks to their future sensation.
McCaffrey only ran for 124 yards on 32 carries in his first two games of the 2015 season, but he quickly seized the starting spot after that. In the final 12 games, he only had one game in which he rushed for less than 100 yards and produced three with 100 yards or more receiving.
He was a star thanks to multiple big games, but it was the Rose Bowl against Iowa where he cemented his legacy.
McCaffrey produced 368 all-purpose yards, including an electric punt return touchdown to lead the Cardinal to a 45-16 win. He would finish second in Heisman Trophy voting that year, losing out to Alabama Crimson Tide running back Derrick Henry.
While his 2016 season wasn’t as electric as 2015, McCaffrey still ran for 1,603 yards and 13 touchdowns in a run-heavy Stanford offense. He finished ninth in the Heisman voting that year and his performance was enough for him to enter the NFL Draft.
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At the NFL Combine, McCaffrey impressed teams with a 4.48-second 40-yard dash alongside a 37.5″ vertical jump. The Carolina Panthers selected the Stanford running back with the eighth pick of the 2016 NFL Draft, eventually trading him to the San Francisco 49ers in 2022.
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