Texas Tech football: 3 Kansas State offensive weapons to know

RB Deuce Vaughn

Everyone loves undersized college football players.  Kansas State has one of the smallest players in the nation on their roster in Deuce Vaugh so we’d better be ready to hear plenty about him over the next few years.

In fact, the 5-foot-5, 168-pound native of Round Rock, Texas is already being compared to KSU legend Darren Sproles.  That’s a bit premature though, given that Vaughn is just a true freshman who has played two games in his career.

While his diminutive size does naturally remind people of Sproles, so too does his playing style.  That’s because Vaughn isn’t used like a typical RB.

Rather than getting most of his touches on standard handoffs where he would have to run between the tackles, the explosive back is used more as a receiver out of the backfield as well as a change-of-pace back.

This year, he’s caught five passes for 153 yards, which leads his team.  That’s an average of 30.5 yards per reception.  And that part of his game was how he torched OU when he caught four passes for 129 yards.

On the ground, he’s no slouch though.  He’s rushed 20 times for 92 yards (4.6 per rush) and a pair of TDs.  Most of those carries have come on draws or sweeps as the Wildcats look to get him the ball in space as often as possible.

After his breakout game against OU, there’s no question that Vaughn will be a focal point of Tech’s defensive game plan.  However, corraling this eclectic freshman is proving to be tougher than many might have initially expected given his size.