Kansas State football running back Deuce Vaughn excited to reunite with his father in Dallas
It was difficult to tell who was more excited, Deuce Vaughn or his father Chris, to learn that Deuce had been picked by the Dallas Cowboys on Saturday in the sixth round of the 2023 NFL Draft.
But there was no question who was the more emotional.
Television video from the team's draft headquarters showed Chris Vaughn, a Cowboys scout, break down in tears of joy when told by his colleagues that they were about to draft his son with the No. 212 overall pick.
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As for Deuce Vaughn, Kansas State's All-America running back, he was still processing everything a short time after getting the call from Cowboys owner Jerry Jones.
"I’m not going to lie, it has not (sunk in) yet," Vaughn said during an interview on the Cowboys' online draft show. "I’m sure it will over the next couple of hours, but I'm super excited.
"It was crazy. I was sitting there and just talking to a couple of friends that were sitting next to me at the (watch) party, and I looked down and there was a Dallas area code that popped up, and I had to pause for a couple of seconds to just think about it. But I got on the phone and I heard Jerry Jones' voiced and it's all starting to feel a little more real."
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Deuce Vaughn eager to prove himself in the NFL with the Cowboys
The call was a long time in coming for Vaughn, K-State's second-leading career rusher in just three seasons with the Wildcats. Then again it has been that way his entire football career.
At just 5-foot-5, 179 pounds, Vaughn has had to prove himself at every level, from high school to college and now to the pros, where scouts had a hard time getting past his size regardless of his undeniable productivity. But for him the number next to his name in the draft was never a concern.
"For myself, it was never really when I was selected, but it was where," Vaughn said. "It was going to be the place with the right fit, the place that had the belief in me to come in and take my opportunity and to be able to run with it.
"That's how it was coming out of high school at Kansas State, and I feel like that's how it is going to Dallas, and I'm quite sure they are going to give me a platform to go and work my butt off and eat crumbs. To do everything I can to make not only the team successful, but myself successful, and I feel like that happened today."
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With the Cowboys' selection, Vaughn became the fourth K-State player picked in the draft, the most for the Wildcats since 2003. Defensive end Felix Anudike-Uzomah was the first, going to the Kansas City Chiefs in the first round on Friday, with cornerback Julius Brents picked by the Indianapolis Colts in Friday's second round and safety Josh Hayes selected early in the sixth by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Like all his former K-State teammates selected, Vaughn will be playing close to his Round Rock, Texas, home.
Vaughn was not heavily recruited out of Cedar Ridge High School, where he rushed for 4,405 yards during his career. Of the Power Five schools that courted him, only K-State wanted him to be an every-down running back.
The Wildcats were immediately rewarded as Vaughn rushed for 642 yards and seven touchdowns as a true freshman during a season that was shortened to 10 games because of the COVID-19 pandemic. After receiving freshman All-America honors, he took it up a notch as a junior with 1,404 rushing yards, a team-high 49 catches for 468 yards and 22 total touchdowns.
Vaughn was a consensus first-team All-American as an all-purpose back in each of his last two K-State seasons, capping his career off with 1,558 rushing yards, 42 catches for 378 yards and 12 total touchdowns. His 3,604 career rushing yards trail only former All-American Darren Sproles while his 5,029 all-purpose yards were third behind Sproles and receiver Tyler Lockett, another All-American.
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Versatility adds to Deuce Vaughn's value for Dallas Cowboys
Vaughn's pass-catching ability — his 116 receptions for 1,280 yards and nine touchdowns are the most ever by a K-State running back — only adds to his value.
"I feel like my versatility is one of the biggest reasons why I have been successful at Kansas State," Vaughn said. "I feel like the ability to be split out into the slot and running deep routes, intermediate routes, short routes and coming out of the backfield, being able to be almost like a nightmare matchup for linebackers and things like that has been one of things I pride myself on.
"Just having another way to get the ball in your hands in space. Understanding that that's how I was successful at Kansas State."
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In talking to his dad while preparing for the draft, the subject of landing in Dallas never really came up, Vaughn said. It was always about finding the right fit.
"It didn't matter when I went or if I was drafted, understanding that all we needed was a chance," Vaughn said. "And so I always had in the back of my head that Dallas would be a great spot to land because I have always wanted to play with a star on the side of my helmet.
"For it to come to fruition the way that it did, and to be able to see (Chris Vaughn) on the other side of the (television) screen in the war room, it was huge, man. It was unreal."
Arne Green is based in Salina and covers Kansas State University sports for the Gannett network. He can be reached at agreen@gannett.com or on Twitter at @arnegreen.
This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas State football's Deuce Vaughn picked by Cowboys in NFL Draft
