Few would doubt Hawaii running back Dayton Furuta’s toughness and workmanlike approach.

But his speed, at 5 feet 11 and 250 pounds?

Furuta proved to be a relatively speedy healer, disproving medical predictions. Furuta was initially told he faced up to 16 weeks of rehabilitation after suffering a broken right fibula in the season’s second game. But he was declared fit in 10 weeks and, after deciding to wait an extra seven days because of a cloudy X-ray, returned to action in Saturday’s game against San Diego State.

“He worked extremely hard with his rehab,” associate head coach Brian Smith said of the fifth-year senior. “It’s a testament to his mental toughness, and his drive, and how important the game and the team is to him.”

It was in the second quarter against Oregon State when Furuta caught a shovel pass from Cole McDonald. “I was stiff-arming the linebacker to my left, and then the corner chopped me from the right,” Furuta recalled. “My leg got stuck. It just snapped the fib.”

Two days later, Dr. Nick Crawford performed the surgery. After that, athletic trainer Wade Yamasaki took charge of Furuta’s rehabilitation program.

Furuta received advice from former UH players Lono Manners and Bryant Moniz, both of whom suffered fibula injuries during their senior seasons. Left slotback Jason-Matthew Sharsh, who suffered a similar injury in junior college, also offered encouragement.

“Be patient,” Sharsh said. “Don’t push it.”

But Furuta was never known to be a patient with patience. At Mililani High, he played a week after suffering a broken hand. Two weeks after breaking a bone in his foot, he was back on the field. “Last year, I tore my foot and still played,” Furuta said. “Nothing new to me.”

Furuta, who is set to earn a bachelor’s degree next month, has a limited class schedule this semester. That allowed him to spend most of his weekdays in the training room or meeting room. Soon after arriving at UH at 5:30 a.m., he went into the hot tub. After that, his ankle received various treatments, from electrical stimulation to exercises.

“From 5:30 to 4, it was all treatment,” Furuta said. “I took a nap in the training room. I would eat lunch in the training room.”

In the evening, his fiancee, Summer Lee, took over the rehab program. “My foot was basically a water balloon,” Furuta said. “Three or four times a day, I’d have to get the water out of the balloon. It’s like a stress ball. I had to milk all that swelling out every day. It would be fat. You’d have to milk it down so all the blood would go back into my leg. That just increases the recovery.”

After five weeks, Furuta did not need the scooter that kept his right leg elevated when he maneuvered around campus. Soon after, he did need a medical boot.

Furuta said he felt good enough to return for the Nov. 16 road game against UNLV. It was decided to delay his debut until last Saturday. Against SDSU, Furuta was on the kickoff return unit.

“I wanted to hit somebody,” Furuta said, smiling. “Everything was fair-caught back there. I didn’t get the opportunity.”

He also did not get to carry the ball in a short-yardage situation, his specialty that earned him the handle “Froot Train.”

“I was buckled up and ready to go,” Furuta said. He is expected to have an expanded role in Saturday’s game against Army West Point.

“He’s worked hard,” McDonald said. “You can see the work paid off for him. He’s a great guy to be around here. He’s definitely a leader.”