Reuben Sanders (July 10, 1876 – December 12, 1957) was a legend of stamina and achievement in an era where few records were kept. He is considered one of Oregon's best all-around athletes ever.
A member of the Siletz tribe and native of Corvallis, Sanders studied at Chemawa Indian School and then spent four years at Willamette University. He competed in football, basketball, cycling, boxing, wrestling and track and field. Reuben won a gold medal in basketball at the 1905 Lewis and Clark Exposition in Portland and held the Oregon record in shot put for a time.
Sanders was known for playing in an amazing number of contests in a short period of time, sometimes four to five football games in one week. That might mean playing for Willamette one day, then the MAC, then a Salem city league team. It is believed he faced the University of Oregon four times in one season, playing for four different teams. Eligibility rules were not enforced in the state until 1910.
Reuben played many different positions in football and was known for his ability to punt the ball 70 yards using running rugby-style form. He toured with the Chemawa football and baseball teams, facing university teams at Stanford and Cal and spent one season with the powerful Sherman Institute team in Riverside, CA. That season he faced Jim Thorpe's traveling team and outplayed the great Native athlete.
Sanders kept playing sports until 1918, he had transitioned into teaching and coaching at Chemawa in 1911, taking charge of four teams. He would continue to lead at the school until his festive retirement in 1941. But Sanders would stay close, assisting the football staff and then becoming a faithful spectator. He had a role in creating the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians. Sanders never gave up sports, playing golf, hiking, hunting and fishing.
Reuben Sanders is also a member of the Native American Athletic Hall of Fame. The playing field at Chemawa is named in his honor.