The most impressive thing about Hughes, though, is his story.
As a kid, his passion was baseball. Football was just a thing for an athletic kid to do during football season. As he progressed, he turned into a big-time high school running back and kick returner, winning various awards in football-mad Texas.
Here’s where it got interesting: He was recruited to TCU by coach Gary Patterson and told he’d be switched to defense.
Hughes didn’t quite believe him.
“Jerry told me, ‘Yeah, that’s what they’re saying, but I’ll be able to change their minds,’ ” Hughes Sr. said.
Never happened. As soon as Hughes got to practice, he found his name on the back of jersey No. 98. Not a lot of running backs wearing 98. But there was no revolt, no calling home to the folks and saying, “Get me out of here!”
“I was a little shocked at first (when I saw the No. 98),” Hughes said. “I thought maybe they would redshirt me, but they said they would try me at defensive end, and I was like, ‘OK, I’m cool with that. How can I get out on to the field?’ That was my next question . . . I saw it as a new challenge.”
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