Running back, Houston (from Rice), 2022–25
Dean Connors
- Number
- No. 44
- Height
- 6′0″
- Weight
- 206 lb
- Class (2025)
- Senior
- Hometown
- Kamuela, HI
- Born
- Aug 29, 2003
Dean Connors played running back at Rice (2022–24) and Houston (2025).
Career highs
184rushing yards, career highat Charlotte, 20233rushing touchdowns, career hightwice; last vs. Texas Southern, 20249catches, career highvs. Sam Houston, 2024109receiving yards, career highvs. UTSA, 20242receiving touchdowns, career highat South Florida, 2023Rushing
Receiving
Returns
Season lines from CollegeFootballData, regular season and bowls.
On the roster
As each season’s roster listed the player (CollegeFootballData). Classes before the latest listing are counted back from it; “Yr 1” is the year on file where that count can’t place a season he played (a redshirt, transfer or 2020 year); height and weight as last listed.
Per play
| Season | Team | Plays | EPA/play | Pctile | Median | Total | Usage | Adj. rush |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Rice | 35 | -0.18 | – | – | -6.3 | 5% | – |
| 2023 | Rice | 167 | 0.38 | 94th (n=450) | 0.17 | 63.2 | 21% | 0.28 |
| 2024 | Rice | 214 | 0.14 | 44th (n=434) | 0.16 | 30.8 | 28% | 0.03 |
| 2025 | Houston | 248 | -0.02 | 18th (n=576) | 0.10 | -4.7 | 26% | 0.04 |
Expected points added: how much the player’s plays moved the team’s expected score, per play and in total. Plays: total EPA divided by EPA per play, the plays the source credits to him (for a receiver roughly his catches and runs, not every target; for a passer, not every attempt), so it can differ from attempts plus carries. Percentile: against the position’s regulars that season across all divisions on file (quarterbacks with 150+ plays, backs 60+, receivers and tight ends 30+), with how many there were (n) and their median; a dash means too few plays to rank. A season in progress uses the full-season bar scaled by games played, never below 75 plays for quarterbacks, 30 for backs and 20 for receivers. The cohort grows or shrinks with the source’s coverage each season (2025 lists far more players), so compare percentiles rather than raw EPA across years. FCS seasons are marked. Usage: the share of the team’s plays the player was part of (shown from 20 plays). Adjusted pass and rush: EPA per play adjusted for the defenses faced (CollegeFootballData’s WEPA). From CollegeFootballData, 2013 on.
Rushing detail
| Season | Team | Success | Line yards | Second level | Open field | Stuffed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Houston | 39% | 3.00 | 0.90 | 1.30 | 16% |
Where his yards came from, per carry: line yards are the ones credited to the blockers (the first few, and losses), second level the yards 5 to 10 past the line, open field those beyond 10. Success: carries that kept the offense on schedule. Stuffed: carries stopped at or behind the line. From CollegeFootballData, FBS games, 2025 on.
Game by game
2025 Houston 13 games, 977 rushing yards, 6 TD
| Date | Opponent | Result | Car | Rush yds | Rush TD | Rec | Rec yds | Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 28 | vs. | W 27–0 | 15 | 50 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Sep 6 | at | W 35–9 | 13 | 132 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| Sep 12 | vs. | W 36–20 | 22 | 89 | 1 | 2 | 22 | 0 |
| Sep 26 | at | W 27–24 | 17 | 53 | 0 | 4 | 33 | 0 |
| Oct 4 | vs. | L 11–35 | 13 | 31 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 0 |
| Oct 11 | at | W 39–17 | 15 | 83 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 1 |
| Oct 18 | vs. | W 31–28 | 20 | 100 | 0 | 3 | 38 | 0 |
| Oct 25 | at | W 24–16 | 20 | 48 | 0 | 2 | 17 | 0 |
| Nov 1 | vs. | L 35–45 | 13 | 71 | 0 | 3 | 27 | 0 |
| Nov 7 | at | W 30–27 | 10 | 68 | 0 | 2 | 16 | 1 |
| Nov 22 | vs. | L 14–17 | 12 | 75 | 0 | 5 | 47 | 1 |
| Nov 29 | at | W 31–24 | 14 | 51 | 1 | 3 | 22 | 0 |
| Dec 27 ✦ | vs. | W 38–35 | 16 | 126 | 1 | 3 | 12 | 0 |
2024 Rice 12 games, 780 rushing yards, 9 TD
| Date | Opponent | Result | Car | Rush yds | Rush TD | Rec | Rec yds | Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 31 | vs. | L 14–34 | 12 | 52 | 1 | 9 | 30 | 0 |
| Sep 7 | vs. | W 69–7 | 9 | 113 | 3 | 4 | 34 | 0 |
| Sep 14 | at | L 7–33 | 11 | 32 | 1 | 5 | 17 | 0 |
| Sep 21 | at | L 14–37 | 9 | 51 | 0 | 8 | 31 | 0 |
| Sep 28 | vs. | L 20–21 | 14 | 121 | 0 | 2 | 14 | 0 |
| Oct 12 | vs. | W 29–27 | 8 | 27 | 1 | 5 | 109 | 1 |
| Oct 19 | at | L 10–24 | 11 | 76 | 0 | 7 | 34 | 0 |
| Oct 26 | at | L 10–17 | 20 | 46 | 0 | 4 | 13 | 0 |
| Nov 2 | vs. | W 24–10 | 18 | 105 | 2 | 4 | 34 | 0 |
| Nov 8 | at | L 20–27 | 14 | 55 | 0 | 6 | 22 | 0 |
| Nov 23 | at | L 14–40 | 16 | 62 | 1 | 3 | 43 | 0 |
| Nov 30 | vs. | W 35–28 | 17 | 40 | 0 | 4 | 91 | 1 |
2023 Rice 13 games, 771 rushing yards, 7 TD
| Date | Opponent | Result | Car | Rush yds | Rush TD | Rec | Rec yds | Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 2 | at | L 10–37 | 8 | 23 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 0 |
| Sep 9 | vs. | W 43–41 | 8 | 48 | 0 | 7 | 82 | 0 |
| Sep 16 | vs. | W 59–7 | 8 | 66 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 0 |
| Sep 23 | at | L 29–42 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 98 | 2 |
| Sep 30 | vs. | W 24–17 | 5 | −1 | 0 | 1 | 24 | 0 |
| Oct 7 | vs. | L 31–38 | 7 | 42 | 0 | 7 | 88 | 0 |
| Oct 19 | at | W 42–10 | 9 | 120 | 3 | 2 | 20 | 0 |
| Oct 28 | vs. | L 28–30 | 8 | 37 | 0 | 2 | 12 | 0 |
| Nov 4 | vs. | L 31–36 | 7 | 77 | 1 | 7 | 33 | 1 |
| Nov 11 | at | L 14–34 | 8 | 34 | 0 | 3 | 13 | 0 |
| Nov 18 | at | W 28–7 | 19 | 184 | 0 | – | – | – |
| Nov 25 | vs. | W 24–21 | 14 | 75 | 0 | 4 | 11 | 0 |
| Dec 26 ✦ | vs. | L 21–45 | 15 | 64 | 2 | 1 | 8 | 0 |
2022 Rice 11 games, 128 rushing yards
| Date | Opponent | Result | Car | Rush yds | Rush TD | Rec | Rec yds | Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 3 | at | L 14–66 | 6 | 28 | 0 | – | – | – |
| Sep 10 | vs. | W 52–10 | 6 | 44 | 0 | 1 | −2 | 0 |
| Sep 17 | vs. | W 33–21 | 5 | 17 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| Sep 24 | at | L 27–34 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 1 | vs. | W 28–24 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 1 |
| Oct 15 | at | L 14–17 | 1 | −2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 0 |
| Oct 22 | at | W 42–41 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Oct 29 | vs. | L 23–56 | – | – | – | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Nov 3 | vs. | W 37–30 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 0 |
| Nov 12 | at | L 10–45 | 5 | 24 | 0 | – | – | – |
| Nov 19 | vs. | L 7–41 | – | – | – | – | – | – |
Box scores from CollegeFootballData, 2004 on. ✦ postseason; ★ a career high on file.
Before the draft
| Drill | Pro day 2026 |
|---|---|
| Height | 5′11⅜″ |
| Weight | 206 lb |
| Arm length | 29⅝″ |
| Hand size | 9¼″ |
| Wingspan | 71″ |
| 40-yard dash | 4.48 s |
| 10-yard split | 1.57 s |
| Vertical jump | 39½″ |
| Broad jump | 10′2″ |
| Bench press | 21 reps |
| 3-cone drill | 6.95 s |
| 20-yard shuttle | 4.29 s |
Pre-draft measurables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).
In the NFL
1 season, 2 games with a stat; latest team: Los Angeles Rams.
| Season | Team | G | Car | Yds | TD | Rec | Rec yds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (so far) | Los Angeles Rams | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Regular seasons, from nflverse (CC BY 4.0). G counts games in which the player recorded a stat.
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