When Re’Shaun Sanford II first arrived at fall camp at Houston in 2023, he was expected to play a significant role in the offense as a true freshman. But the Harker Heights, TX native never got the chance to see his anticipated true freshman season materialize. During fall camp, he suffered a torn ACL in his right knee that sidelined him for the entire season.
Sanford persevered and returned in 2024 as the Cougars’ most productive skill player. The running back’s 444 rushing yards led the team, and he added 157 yards as a frequented utilized receiver. However, he was denied a follow-up act in 2025. This time, it was the ACL in his left knee that uprooted his season before it began.
Sanford made a triumphant return to the gridiron Saturday in Houston’s 2026 opener against Oregon State. And just as he did coming off his first ACL tear two years ago, Sanford looked fresh in his first action following the debilitating injury. In the second quarter of a 9-7 game, the former high school track standout padded the Cougars’ lead by breaking free for a 56-yard touchdown run, reaching an estimated top speed exceeding 20 miles per hour.
“We ran a little gap scheme play,” Sanford recalled. “I saw the corner out there, and it was a one-on-one. We always want to win our one-on-ones. So after I made him miss, I saw a whole lot of green grass and I just started running. I was looking at the jumbotron to see if anyone was trailing, and I just kept running. It was a full, full burst of excitement at that point.”
HOUSTON, TEXAS – SEPTEMBER 05: Re’shaun Sanford II #6 of the Houston Cougars celebrates a touchdown against the Oregon State Beavers during the second quarter at TDECU Stadium on September 05, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images) Getty Images
The long, arduous days of intense rehabilitation and physical therapy all seemed worth when the fourth-year Cougar running back took crossed the goal line on the lengthy scamper.
“It’s an amazing feeling,” Sanford said. “Every time you miss a year of something you love doing, you realize how much you really love it. I feel like I was very prepared for that moment as well. Of course, everybody goes into the game wanting to score, but I just wanted to do my job. My preparation over the past year has allowed me to be ready for this moment.”
Sanford exuberantly celebrated the score, repeatedly jumping up and down as teammates sprinted toward him in the end zone. It was a moment many of those teammates had been eager to see, considering the positivity Sanford consistently brought to the team while sidelined with his ACL injury in 2025.
“I definitely believe that infectious energy, like good energy, can be fed off of,” Sanford said. “Negative energy can be fed off too, but what good is that if you’re gonna be negative? Even if things might be bad, you’ve got to pump your teammates’ tires. If I’m being infectious, like my energy being infectious, you stay positive and it feeds off to the next guy. Now he’s being positive, and that goes on so on and so forth, so we’re all moving with the same mindset.”
Head coach Willie Fritz said Sanford’s positivity reached a point where the pain he endured during two of the last three seasons often seemed secondary.
“He’s had a very positive attitude the whole time,” Fritz said. “Sometimes I forget that he’s had two serious back-to-back injuries because he has a really good attitude about everything. We’re really happy for him. It’s good when a guy overcomes adversity, and he certainly has.”
But Sanford wasn’t the only Houston running back whose positivity throughout adversity paid dividends.
The Cougars added Makhi Hughes to the running back room this offseason. Hughes, a former Fritz recruit, at Tulane was a two-time First Team All-American Conference selection, posting back-to-back 1,300-yard rushing seasons with the Green Wave. He was one of the most coveted transfers in the country entering the 2025 season, ultimately landing at Oregon with expectations of contending for the Doak Walker Award or Heisman Trophy.
Instead, he was buried on the depth chart and posted a mere 17 carries for 70 yards. With his opportunities surprisingly limited in Eugene, Hughes left the team after four games and preserved his redshirt.
HOUSTON, TEXAS – SEPTEMBER 05: Makhi Hughes #21 of the Houston Cougars carries the ball against Jaylen Hill #91 of the Oregon State Beavers during the first quarter at TDECU Stadium on September 05, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images) Getty Images
His redemption arc came under the coach who first recruited him. In his Houston debut, Hughes delivered a team-high 98 rushing yards and a touchdown, immediately reclaiming the lead running back role he enjoyed for two years at Tulane.
“I’ve been seeing it since January, since I got here,” Houston cornerback Javion White said of Hughes. “I did my freshman year with him at Tulane, and he was killing us on defense in practice. So I knew coming here playing against him again, it was gonna be the same thing no doubt.”
With Hughes contributing 98 yards and Sanford adding 75 in the opener, Houston quickly saw the potential of a running back room led by two players who were deprived of opportunities in 2025.
“I think the sky is the limit for the running back room as a whole,” Sanford said. “But as far as me and Makhi go, I feel like we complement each other very well. We play two different styles of football, but they both go with each other very well. When we’re all clicking on all cylinders, t’s only going to get better from this weekend and moving on forward.”
The two complementary pieces should continue to split carries moving forward, spearheading a rushing attack that registered 228 yards on Oregon State.
“It’s been a blessing to work with Makhi,” Sanford said. “I’ve learned a lot from him. He’s taught me a lot, and we bounce ideas off each other a whole bunch. Even off the field, it’s been a good dynamic between me and Makhi. Every week coming to work, us pushing each other — kind of like last year with Dean (Connors). When Dean came in, it made me a lot better because I got to push myself. Seeing somebody coming in who’s already very established already helps you self-evaluate and makes you push yourself to be better. Competition is the invisible motivation pushing you in the back. I feel like it’s the same with Makhi. I’ve only gotten better since he’s been here.”
After enduring very different setbacks in 2025, Sanford and Hughes are now powering the same Houston backfield — and giving the Cougars a formidable one-two punch in the process.