 Vaughn with the Kansas State Wildcats in 2021 | |||||||||||
| No. 42 – Denver Broncos | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Running back | ||||||||||
| Roster status | Practice squad | ||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||
| Born | (2001-11-02)November 2, 2001 (age 24) Fayetteville, Arkansas, U.S. | ||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) | ||||||||||
| Weight | 173 lb (78 kg) | ||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||
| High school | Cedar Ridge (Round Rock, Texas) | ||||||||||
| College | Kansas State (2020–2022) | ||||||||||
| NFL draft | 2023: 6th round, 212th overall pick | ||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||
| |||||||||||
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||
| Career NFL statistics as of Week 1, 2025 | |||||||||||
| |||||||||||
Christopher "Deuce"Vaughn II (born November 2, 2001) is an American professionalfootballrunning back for theDenver Broncos of theNational Football League (NFL). He playedcollege football for theKansas State Wildcats and was selected by theDallas Cowboys in the sixth round of the2023 NFL draft. Vaughn is known for being the shortest running back to ever be drafted in the NFL.
Vaughn moved frequently growing up due to his father's occupation as acollege football coach before settling inRound Rock, Texas, and attendedCedar Ridge High School, where he played football and ran track.[1]
As a junior, he collected 1,901 rushing yards, 21 rushing touchdowns, 9 receptions, 159 receiving yards and one receiving touchdown. He received honorable-mention all-state honors from the Texas Sports Writers Association.
As a senior, Vaughn broke Cedar Ridge's single-season rushing record with 1,938 yards, while having 589 receiving yards and 25 touchdowns. He rushed for 375 yards againstRound Rock High School and 302 yards with 5 touchdowns againstWestwood High School.[2] He received his second straight District 13-6A Offensive MVP award.
He finished his high school career with 4,405 rushing yards and 38 rushing touchdowns, 914 receiving yards, 11 receiving touchdowns, 153 return yards and 5,472 all-purpose yards. Despite his size, Vaughn was a 3-star recruit who received multiple scholarship offers from programs likeAir Force,Arkansas,Army,Kansas,Missouri,North Texas,South Florida,UTSA, andWyoming, with preferred walk-on offers fromBaylor,Oklahoma State,New Mexico,Texas Christian, andVirginia Tech.[3]
Vaughn accepted a football scholarship fromKansas State University. He entered his freshman season as one of the Wildcats' top running backs and became the team's starter over Harry Trotter early in the season.[4] He had three games on the season going over 100 rushing yards:Texas Tech,Baylor, andTexas.[5][6][7] He recorded a 129-yard receiving game againstOklahoma.[8]
He registered 123 carries for 642 rushing yards, seven rushing touchdowns, 25 receptions for 434 yards, two receiving touchdowns, and seven kickoff returns for 145 yards.[9] He was named the Big 12 Conference Offensive Freshman of the Year and second-team All-Conference.[10][11]
Vaughn entered his sophomore season on the watch list for theDoak Walker Award.[12] He tallied 235 carries for 1,404 yards (6-yard avg.), 18 rushing touchdowns, 49 receptions for 468 yards (9-yard avg.) and four receiving touchdowns. He had nine games on the year going over 100 rushing yards to go with one game going over 100 receiving yards.[13]
He posted 162 rushing yards (career-high), 70 receiving yards, and three rushing touchdowns, including an 80-yard touchdown run againstKansas.[14] He had 146 rushing yards, three rushing touchdowns and one receiving touchdown in the2022 Texas Bowl 42–20 win againstLSU.[15] He was named as a Consensus All-American.[16]
As a junior, he recorded 293 carries for 1,558 yards (5.3-yard avg.), nine rushing touchdowns, 42 receptions for 378 yards (9-yard avg.), three receiving touchdowns and 1,936 all-purpose yards.[17] He became the third player in school history with multiple 1,000-yard rushing seasons and the first player with 1,000 rushing yards and 1,000 receiving yards in a career.
He had 147 rushing yards and a touchdown in the regular-season finale against theKansas. He tallied 130 rushing yards and one touchdown in theBig 12 Championship Game 31–28 overtime victory againstTCU.[18] He had 133 rushing yards, including an 88-yard touchdown, in the 45–202022 Sugar Bowl loss againstAlabama.[19] At the end of the season, he chose to forgo his senior season to enter the2023 NFL draft.[20]
He finished his college career with 651carries (second in school history), 3,604 rushing yards (second in school history),5.5-yard average, 34 rushing touchdowns, twenty one 100-yard rushing games (second in school history), 116 receptions for 1,280 yards (11-yard avg.), 9 receiving touchdowns, 7 kickoff returns for 145 yards (20.7-yard avg.), 5,029 all-purpose yards (third in school history), 258 points scored (sixth in school history) and 279 rushing yards in bowl games (school record). He was one of just two Big 12 players to ever register 3,600 rushing yards and 1,250 receiving yards in a career (DeMarco Murray). He was named a consensusAll-American for the 2022 season.[21]
| Kansas State Wildcats | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Games | Rushing | Receiving | Kick Returns | ||||||||||
| GP | GS | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | Rec | Yds | Avg | TD | Ret | Yds | Avg | TD | |
| 2020 | 10 | 7 | 123 | 642 | 5.2 | 7 | 25 | 434 | 17.4 | 2 | 7 | 145 | 20.7 | 0 |
| 2021 | 13 | 13 | 235 | 1,404 | 6.0 | 18 | 49 | 468 | 9.6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 |
| 2022 | 12 | 12 | 293 | 1,558 | 5.3 | 9 | 40 | 348 | 8.7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 |
| Career | 35 | 32 | 651 | 3,604 | 5.5 | 34 | 114 | 1,250 | 10.9 | 9 | 7 | 145 | 20.7 | 0 |
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 ft 5 in (1.65 m) | 179 lb (81 kg) | 27+3⁄4 in (0.70 m) | 9+1⁄2 in (0.24 m) | 4.56 s | 1.59 s | 2.67 s | 4.22 s | 7.10 s | 35.5 in (0.90 m) | 9 ft 8 in (2.95 m) | 17 reps | |
| Sources:[22][23] | ||||||||||||
Vaughn was selected by theDallas Cowboys in the sixth round (212th overall) of the 2023 NFL draft. His father, who is a scout for the Cowboys, called Vaughn to tell him he had been drafted.[24] With a measurement at the combine of 5'5", Vaughn became the shortest running back ever drafted since the NFL began tracking the combine.[25] On January 3, 2024, he was placed on the reserve/injured list with an ankle injury. He appeared in 7 games as a third-string running back, compiling 23 rushes for 40 yards, 7 receptions for 40 yards and 4 punt returns for 19 yards. He was declared inactive in 9 games. On January 5, 2025, Vaughn rushed six times for a career-high 37 yards. He had 6.2 yards per carry.
In 2024, he appeared in 8 games as a backup running back and was declared inactive in 9 games. He registered 17 carries for 70 yards and 3 receptions for 18 yards.
On August 26, 2025, Vaughn was waived by the Cowboys as part of final roster cuts.[26]
On September 9, 2025, Vaughn was signed to theDenver Broncos' practice squad.[27]
| Year | Team | Games | Rushing | Receiving | Punt Returns | Fumbles | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Ret | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Fum | Lost | ||
| 2023 | DAL | 7 | 0 | 23 | 40 | 1.7 | 13 | 0 | 7 | 40 | 5.7 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 10.0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2024 | DAL | 7 | 0 | 17 | 70 | 4.1 | 12 | 0 | 3 | 18 | 6.0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 14 | 0 | 40 | 110 | 2.8 | 13 | 0 | 10 | 58 | 5.8 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 10.0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Vaughn's father, Chris, played college football atMurray State and is a scout for theDallas Cowboys after previously working as an assistant coach atArkansas,Ole Miss,Memphis andTexas.[28] Deuce is a member ofKappa Alpha Psi fraternity.
