Hugh Charles

Arizona

Nov 1 (Sat)

5:00 p.m.

Position:
Tailback
Height:
5-8
Weight:
190
Class:
Senior
Hometown:
Keller, Texas
High School:
Keller

AT COLORADO: Career Notes?He ended his career sixth all-time at Colorado in rushing yards (2,659), as well as second in all-purpose yards (3,622), fifth in yards from scrimmage (3,211), tied for 27th in receptions (60, tied for the second most by a running back), 49th in receiving yards (552, sixth most by an RB), and tied for 38th in scoring (102 points). He had 11 games with 100 or more yards rushing which tied for the fifth most in school history. The 11th player at CU to have 500 yards both rushing and receiving for a career (the 3,211 yards were the third most of the 11 to do both).

2007 (Sr.)?He became just the seventh player in school history to lead the team in rushing three times, the first since Herchell Troutman from 1995-97, as he had 989 yards on the year despite missing the better part of the first three games of the season with a pulled hamstring. One of 51 players on the original Doak Walker Award Watch List, he earned honorable mention All-Big 12 honors from the Associated Press and the Big 12 Coaches (a couple of other services pegged him second team, rivals.com and Phil Steele’s College Football). His teammates selected him as the recipient of the John Mack Award as the team’s most outstanding offensive player. He played in 12 games, starting five including the Independence Bowl, with 185 attempts in the regular season that produced eight rushing touchdowns, 28 runs of 10 or more yards and 73 of five or longer. He also had 24 catches for 233 yards (9.7 per) and another score, and he assumed the kickoff return duties late in the year due to injuries, and responded with 14 returns for 364 yards, a healthy 26.0 average. He was fourth in the Big 12 and 44th in the NCAA in rushing (89.9 yards per game, which ranked him 16th in total offense in the conference), was fifth and 31st in each, respectively, in all-purpose yards (144.2 per), and was fourth in the league and 31st nationally in kickoff return average (26.0). He had four straight 100-yard rushing games at one point this season (Miami through Kansas State games), the longest streak by a Buff since TB Chris Brown had eight consecutive games reaching the century mark in 2002. In fact, Charles’ run of four straight was just the seventh time that happened in Colorado history (by six players). Overall, he eclipsed the 100-yard mark six times. He finished the year with 1,586 all-purpose yards, but he had 1,376 over the final nine games, the fifth most in the nation for that span. He earned 54 first downs (39 rushing, 15 receiving), the second most on the team, with 11 of them earned on third or fourth down. The coaches named him the offensive player of the week for the Oklahoma and Baylor games (the NFF/Colorado Chapter selected him as its player of the week for the OU game as well), and he was CU’s Athlete of the Week for his efforts against Kansas State (when he had a career high 171 rushing yards) and Nebraska (his 327 all-purpose yards were the sixth most for a single game in school history, as he had 169 rushing, 33 receiving and 125 on kickoff returns). In the bowl game against Alabama, he had 14 rushes for 69 yards and returned six kickoffs for 126 yards, setting CU bowl records for kickoff returns and yards. He was the recipient of the Fred Casotti Award as the most improved offensive back in spring ball, and was also the Iron Buffalo Award winner for the running backs, as he was the choice for the honor bestowed on the player at each position who represents hard work, dedication, toughness and total poundage in the weight room.

2006 (Jr.)?He played in all 12 games, including seven starts, as he was CU’s leading rusher for the second straight season. He had 779 net yards on the year, with his 64.9 per game average good for eighth in the Big 12 and 71st in the NCAA. With 139 carries, he averaged 5.6 per attempt, the third best figure by CU’s leading rusher over the previous 16 seasons (trailing only 6.9 by Rashaan Salaam when he won the Heisman in 1994, and 6.3 by Chris Brown, when he was third in the nation in 2002). He had 25 carries of 10 yards or more, with 62 of five-plus, as he was thrown for just 21 yards in losses. He was second on the team in first downs earned with 41 (37 rush, 4 receiving), six coming on third down. He had a pair of 100-yard games, a season-high 119 on 17 tries in the win over Texas Tech, with 20 carries for 109 against Arizona State giving him five for his career. His lone touchdown of the year came on a 25-yard run that gave CU the lead to open the second overtime against Baylor. He caught nine passes for 85 yards, with a long of 33 against ASU. He was one of 50 candidates on the official in-season watch list for the Doak Walker Award, and he received some preseason accolades, topped by The Sporting News selected him second-team All-Big 12.

2005 (Soph.)?He played in all 13 games, starting 12 including the Champs Sports Bowl (he saw action for just one play against Missouri due to an ankle sprain. He earned honorable mention All-Big 12 honors from the Associated Press and the league coaches (he was a second-team choice by the Kansas City Star and the San Antonio Express-News), and honorable mention All-Colorado team honors from the state’s chapter of the National Football Foundation. He was one of just nine players to earn his way on to CU’s prestigious Victory Club, as those who quality have to post a winning productivity grade in at least eight games. He rushed for 842 yards on the season, the sixth most ever by a sophomore at Colorado, as he had 176 carries and six touchdowns in averaging 4.8 yards per rush. He had 26 rushes for 10 or more yards and 60 for five or longer, with the crown carry a 74-yard touchdown run to open the game at Oklahoma State. That was the longest rushing play by a Buff in three years, the longest on CU’s first possession of a game in 16 years, and the second fastest score from scrimmage in school history, coming 18 seconds into the game. In his first start, he rushed for 101 yards and two scores on 15 carries against Colorado State in the season opener, becoming just the 14th player in CU history to run for 100 yards in his first career start. He topped the century mark two other times, as he had a career best 120 yards against OSU and 105 yards versus New Mexico State. He also opened the Nebraska game with a 45-yard run, one of seven times he carried the ball on CU’s first play of the game: he gained 177 yards on those seven plays, or 25.3 per (six of the seven run gained at least seven yards, four 13 or more). He proved dangerous as a receiver as well, catching 26 passes for 226 yards (8.7 per), including a 51-yard touchdown from Joel Klatt against Texas A&M; he thus registered three of the five longest plays from scrimmage on the season for the Buffs. His 226 yards receiving marked the 15th time a running back caught passes for 200-plus yards, his total being the eighth most in school history. He also earned the second most first downs on the team with 43 (35 rushing, eight receiving). Against Clemson in the bowl game, he rushed 13 times for 16 yards, caught two passes for five yards and took a handoff on a kickoff return to add 21 yards to the play. He was CU’s offensive back of the week for the CSU and Oklahoma State games, as selected by the coaching staff. In spring conditioning tests, he was the overall strength and conditioning champion for the “Speed” group (RB, DB, WR, QB, K/P) with 82 points, owning a team best 40-yard dash time of 4.37, with group bests in three other categories.

2004 (Fr.)?He played in 12 games including the Houston Bowl (no starts), sitting out only the season opener as he saw the bulk of his action on special teams. Had 17 rushes for 49 yards for the regular season, with five carries for five or more yards; however, in the bowl game against UTEP, he had the chance to show off his speed. He had more of a role in that game, as he had seven rushes for 51 yards and a touchdown, including a 37-yard sprint that opened the drive on which he eventually scored what would be his first career TD. On the year, 13 of his carries were on first down (for 79 yards), and he earned four first downs (three rushing, one receiving). He also had a kickoff return for 14 yards in the bowl. He carried four times for 17 yards against North Texas and had five carries for 14 yards at Kansas, when he also had a reception for eight yards. On special teams, he finished tied for third in the team point standings with nine on the strength of six tackles (five solo, one inside-the-20), a downed punt and a knockdown block.

TRACK?Though he competed minimally, his personal bests in the long jump both indoors and outdoors are topped by only one other performer in school history: Kingsley Adams owns the top four indoor and the top five outdoor marks, all set between 1973-75. Charles lettered in indoor track as a freshman in 2005, as he finished eighth in the long jump at Big 12 Indoor Championships with a 23-10? effort. He qualified provisionally for the NCAA Championships at Washington’s Husky Classic with a jump of 24-5? (placing third in the meet), and won the Air Force Classic with a 24-5 effort (he wound up not making it into the NCAA’s); his personal indoor best was 25-3?. Also at Air Force, he ran a collegiate best 6.88 in the 60-meter dash in finishing second.   As a sophomore (2006), he competed both indoors and outdoors, but did not letter (team policy requires scoring at the league meet to earn one); once again, he qualified provisionally for the NCAA Indoor at the Husky Classic (24-6?) but did not advance to the national meet. He jumped 23-8 at the Big 12 Indoor meet. Outdoors, he leaped 24-5 in CU’s Potts Invitational, which he did one day after the fourth football practice of the spring. He resumed his career following his senior season, and recorded a jump of 25-0 in the Joe Davies Open at Colorado Mines in January 2008. He finished seventh in the U.S. Indoor Championships (Feb. 24) in Boston with a jump of 24-5?, and was the only collegian competing in the meet. He also placed seventh in the Big 12 Championships and had a provisional qualifying mark for nationals. Outdoors, he finished fourth in the Big 12 Championships in Boulder with a jump of 25-2?, and also helped the 4x100 meter relay team to a third place finish as CU won its first men’s outdoor title in conference action since 1947.

HIGH SCHOOL?As a senior team captain, he was an All-Southwest performer by SuperPrep and Prep Football Report, with PrepStar naming him to its preseason All-Midlands squad. SuperPrep also tabbed him as the No. 56 player (fourth RB) in the Southwest, and Prep Football Report named him the No. 71 player overall (11th RB) in the Midlands. Rivals.com ranked him as the No. 59 overall player in Texas, and the No. 16 running back in the nation. As a senior, he earned first-team all-district (5-5A) honors at both running back and kick returner (he was special teams district MVP), as he averaged 34 yards per return on eight attempts, including one touchdown for 92 yards. On the ground, he totaled 1,084 yards with a long run of 54 and seven touchdowns on 150 attempts, as he also reeled in 24 passes for 200 yards and three scores. A team captain again during his junior year, he garnered first-team all-district honors at kick returner and running back. Averaging about 40 yards for six returns, he scored two touchdowns on dashes of 97 and 82 yards. He had 84 rushes for 607 yards and four touchdowns, with a long run of 50, while making 18 receptions for 120 yards and two more scores. During his sophomore campaign, when he was named the 2002 5A Sophomore Defensive Back of the Year playing free safety, he racked up 20 total tackles, with all eight solo stops going for losses, including four sacks; he also added two pressures and three pass deflections and returned four kickoffs, one for a 91-yard touchdown. Top games: in a 34-31 win over Fossil Ridge his senior year, he rushed the ball 18 times for 180 yards and two touchdowns; in a 38-24 win against Sam Houston in the first round of the 2003 state playoffs, he recorded 140 yards and one score on 16 carries, as he also caught one pass for a 10-yard touchdown; in win over Colleyville that same year, he had 138 yards rushing with one touchdown on 17 attempts, along with a 92-yard kick return for a touchdown. Under coach Kevin Atkinson, Keller was 8-2 his senior season, as it won the district championship before advancing to the second round of the state playoffs; the team went 5-4 his junior year and 4-5 his sophomore season. He also lettered four times in track and was a first-team all-district performer in the 100-meter dash (career best of 10.34) and the long jump (25-3?). He was the only prep athlete in the nation in 2004 to record a jump beyond 25 feet, taking district honors with the effort along with winning the triple jump and being a key member on the 4x100 and 4x200 relay teams. He went on to win the regional championship in the 100 and the long jump in addition to finishing second in the triple jump.

ACADEMICS?He is majoring in Sociology at Colorado and was on schedule to graduate in May 2008. He owned a 3.4 grade point average in high school.

PERSONAL?He was born January 7, 1986 in Tulsa, Okla. Hobbies include fishing, skiing, hanging out with friends and wakeboarding. He also enjoys flying planes; he earned his solo license in a Cessna 172 as a sophomore in high school. One of the team’s speedsters, as he clocked a 4.35 time in the 40-yard dash at a NIKE camp and has maintained that Colorado (4.37); he is one of the most dedicated at training, as he also owns impressive bests in the bench press (405), squat (510), power clean (325), standing long jump (10-6) and vertical jump (41”).

Rushing............................... High Games

Season	G	Att	Yds	Avg	TD	Long	Att	Yds
2004	11	17	49	2.9	0	14	5	17
2005	12	176	842	4.8	6	74t	21	132
2006	12	139	779	5.6	1	44	20	119
2007	11	185	989	5.3	8	41	33	171
Totals	46	517	2659	5.1	15	74t	33	171

Receiving......................................High Games

Season	G	No	Yds	Avg	TD	Long	Rec	Yds
2004	11	1	8	8.0	0	8	1	8
2005	12	26	226	8.7	1	51t	6	85
2006	12	9	85	9.4	0	33	2	30
2007	11	24	233	9.7	1	33	5	48
Totals	46	60	522	9.2	2	51t	6	85

ADDITIONAL STATISTICS?Passing: 1-0-0, 0 (2006). Kickoff Returns: 3-47, 15.7 avg., 18 long (2006); 14-364, 26.0 avg., 34 long (2007). Special Team Tackles: 5,1?6 (2004).