Prior to his acting career, Santos became one of the "starting five" players of
Jose Rizal College Heavy Bombers in which they had won a 1972
NCAA Championship together with
Philip Cezar and David Cezar. He would later play for the U/tex Weavers in the commercial league
MICAA, the
PBA's forerunner. Santos also played thirteen games in the PBA's inaugural season (1975) for the 7-Up Uncolas. In the featured Old-timers game during the 1991 PBA All-Star week, Santos was named MVP for his late-game heroics and hijinks on the court, leading his White team over the Blue team. ==Entertainment career==