Ace Sanders: Life After Professional Football
The last time Ace Sanders ever put on a Jaguars uniform was December of 2014. What ever happened to him?
It’s been almost three years since Ace Sanders had last suited up to play for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League. The now 25 year-old wide receiver/punt returner was drafted by the Jaguars back in 2013 with the 101st overall pick of the 2013 NFL Draft. The former Second Team All-SEC return man from the University of South Carolina was seen as a promising player who could be a difference maker, and maybe add some depth to the struggling Jaguars receiving core.
Hopes were high for Sanders to pull through as a solid playmaker, but he failed to live up to his expectations. Sanders only pulled through one touchdown in his two seasons with the Jaguars. He struggled as a punt returner, only averaging 7.1 yards on 32 returns. By the end of the 2014 season he came out with just six passes for only 55 yards.
To make matters worse, Sanders off-the-field troubles didn’t make it any easier for him. He was suspended for the first four games of the 2014 season for violating the NFL’s substances abuse policy. The very next year he was suspended once again, this time for 10 games for failing a league issued drug test. He was eventually waived by the Jacksonville Jaguars in July of 2015, which marked the end of his short-lived NFL career.
With his NFL career behind him, Sanders decided to pursue a different field of employment outside of professional sports.
Using the money he made during his NFL career, he went forward with an entrepreneurial mindset and founded his own Clothing Line, known as “De’Kulture Clothing”. He operates it out of Palmetto, FL and specializes in designing custom fashion attire. They sell a number of t-shirts and hoodies with unique and complex designs. Photos and videos promoting the young businesses merchandise can be found on social media platforms such as Facebook, twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
De’Kulture is now becoming one of West Florida’s premiere clothing brands.
In today’s day and age, it’s not rare to see former professional sports stars struggle with finances after their time on the field has ended. Perhaps the greatest thing about this story is that Sanders didn’t let his NFL failures bring him down. He chose to keep pushing forward, even if it meant success outside of something he’s been doing all his life; professional sports.