MONTREAL, CANADA - JUNE 12: The Toronto Argonauts open their 2026 CFL regular season on the road against the Montreal Alouettes at Percival Molson Memorial Stadium. (Photo by: James Paddle-Grant/Toronto Argonauts)
It was an off-season question that was asked often, who would be the starting running back for the Toronto Argonauts in 2026?
When training camp opened, returnee Spencer Brown and free-agent addition Peyton Logan split the reps on the first unit. Neither looked bad, but while both flashed, neither seized the opportunity to make the job their own and both were released by the end of camp.
Jyran Mitchell and Qualan Jones were also competing for reps, as were draft picks Isaiah Smith and Weagbe Mombo. All but Mitchell remain with the team, Smith on the roster, Jones and Mombo on the practice roster.
The player that eventually won the starting job was the least talked about of the half-dozen backs that reported to Guelph.
Sam Hicks didn’t play football in 2025. After wrapping up his college career at Abilene Christian, the fourth stop on his post-secondary journey, he found himself out of the game, but he never gave up on his dream of playing pro.
“I worked out and trained every day,” Hicks told Argonauts.ca. “I created my own regimen, took care of what I needed to take care of, and just stayed in shape. I didn’t know what the UFL was going to do, I just had faith and kept working. Then the call came (from Toronto). God gave me the opportunity and I took it.”
Among the five American running backs, the Dallas/Fort Worth native’s name was at the bottom of the depth chart when camp opened but he gradually worked his way to the top. Hicks made big plays every day at camp, either running the ball, or catching it out of the backfield. He also enhanced his value by showing he could return kickoffs if needed.
Was there a time that he knew he’d won the starting job?
“There was never a thought that, ‘Oh, I know now,’ it’s that I always knew coming in. That’s just the type of person I am, I’ll like me over anybody and I love to work. That’s why I made it through training camp and became one of the guys on the roster and making an impact for the team.”
Those written words may lead one to believe Hicks is arrogant, but that’s far from the case. He’s simply confident in his ability. So far, his actions have equaled his self-assuredness. He’s shown that he can get the hard yards by running up the middle but has also displayed his speed by utilizing the width of a CFL field, beating his man to the sideline and turning the run downfield.
Through two games, he’s rushed for 132 yards in an offence that has lived on big offensive plays, adding 39 more yards through the air, and scoring his first CFL touchdown last week in the Capital. His 5.3 yards per carry are slightly above the league average of 5.0.
As a group, the Argos are rushing for 91.0 yards per game, fifth in the CFL, and a whopping 40 yards per game better than last year’s historically low 51.6 yards per outing.
When Hicks looks at his individual stats, his eyes are drawn to one category first, the one he feels is most important to his game.
“I look at combined yards first,” he explained. “Then rushing yards and touchdowns. Because I’m an all-purpose back, I look at combined yards number one.”
He’s also shown that at 5’9”, 190 pounds, he’s a willing blocker, helping out the offensive linemen that make his job easier by providing him holes to run through.
“They’re great, I love them,” said Hicks. “That’s why I block my butt off, to work with those guys. I’m telling you, when I get my first hundred yard game, I’m going to take the boys out to eat.”
The way to an offensive lineman’s heart is through his stomach, so there is no doubt those words from Hicks will be posted in the area of the locker room where the big men hang their oversized hats.
While the evening will be an expensive one, there’s little doubt Hicks would like to be able to pay up next week after the Argos game in Regina against the Roughriders on Friday night.