Former Cowboys rival sent Deuce Vaughn awesome message after draft selection

The Dallas Cowboys tugged on football fans' heartstrings when they selected Kansas State running back Deuce Vaugn in the sixth round of the NFL Draft. Vaughn's father, Chris Vaughn, is an assistant scouting director with the Cowboys and was allowed to make the call to his son in the most wholesome moment of the draft.

Given the sheer emotion demonstrated by Vaughn and the rare father-son dynamic, this has the potential to be the best story in the NFL.

Throw in Vaughn's underdog narrative as a 5-foot-5 running back who didn't do anything at the Combine or his pro day to cement himself as a surefire draft pick, and it's really impossible not to root for the player. Even rival fans couldn't help but appreciate the selection and Chris Vaughn's tear-jerking reaction.

Speaking of rivals, former longtime Cowboys headache Darren Sproles, a K-State alum, reached out to Vaughn after he was drafted and had a particularly awesome quote about their position and similarly undersized stature.

Former Eagles star Darren Sproles wants Cowboys' Deuce Vaughn to follow in his footsteps.

The Sproles comparisons were prevalent on social media the second Dallas selected Vaughn. How could they not be?

As a 5-foot-6, 190-pound running back who also starred for the Wildcats, the similarities are undeniable. Their low center of gravity, contact balance, short-area quickness, and ability to juke would-be tacklers out of their shoes and make plays as receivers out of the backfield are easy to correlate.

Sproles is arguably the greatest player in the history of Kansas State football and is a deserving member of the College Football Hall of Fame. In fact, Vaughn trails only Sproles for second place on the Wildcats' all-time rushing list, though it's notable Vaughn spent three years in Manhattan while Sproles played four years.

The Cowboys will have struck gold -- and then some -- if Vaughn has half of the career Sproles put together. The former fourth-round pick made three Pro Bowls, won a Super Bowl and is part of the Hall of Fame's All-2010's Team.

In his prime, Sproles was arguably the best receiving back in the NFL and one of the premier return specialists. He was underrated as a runner, too, averaging 4.9 yards per attempt and totaling 3,552 yards and 49 touchdowns in his career.

Vaughn will be hard-pressed to surpass those feats and numbers, but he'll have his idol mentoring him along the way as he attempts to "keep the short backs alive."