Tag: Dayon Hayes

Colorado DE Dayon Hayes not suited up for K-State game, per report

Colorado will reportedly be without a key defensive end tonight

Defensive end Dayon Hayes isn’t suited up for Colorado football’s Saturday night game against Kansas State due to injury, according to Adam Munsterteiger of BuffStampede.

A graduate transfer from Pitt, Hayes played in Colorado’s first four games before missing the Buffs’ Week 5 win over UCF. The nature of Hayes’ injury hasn’t been disclosed by head coach Deion Sanders.

Before going down, Hayes recorded 16 total tackles, including a season-high five in the opener against North Dakota State. The 6-foot-3, 265-pound native of Pittsburgh also shined against rival Colorado State, recording 2.5 TFLs and two sacks.

With Hayes out, redshirt freshman Taje McCoy and junior Arden Walker are backup defensive ends to watch. McCoy recorded two TFLs and two sacks in the Buffs’ win over UCF.

Kickoff between Colorado and Kansas State is scheduled for 8:25 p.m. MT on ESPN.

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Colorado assistant Vincent Dancy provides injury update on Dayon Hayes

Colorado is hoping to get Dayon Hayes back soon

One thing that jumped out at me during Colorado football’s Week 5 win over the UCF Knights was how well the Buffs’ defense played despite missing multiple impact players. Well, CU could be getting a key name back soon.

Defensive end Dayon Hayes didn’t play against UCF but is progressing toward a return, according to defensive ends coach Vincent Dancy. Hayes is tied for the team lead with two sacks and is tied for third in tackles for loss (3.5). With another run-heavy squad coming to Boulder this weekend in Kansas State, it would help to have as many bodies as possible along the front to slow down the Wildcats’ rushing attack.

On Wednesday, Dancy was asked if the bye week helped in the recovery process for Hayes (h/t Jake Schwanitz of DNVR Buffs):

“He’s progressing,” Dancy said. “Right now he’s still a little gimpy. Looking forward to getting him back.”

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Damione Lewis says CU newcomers Dayon Hayes and Samuel Okunlola have NFL potential

According to Damione Lewis, Colorado owns multiple defensive linemen with legitimate NFL potential

The Colorado Buffaloes’ coaching staff is flush with former NFL players, including new defensive line coach Damione Lewis. And according to Lewis, multiple big names within his position group have the potential to play on Sundays.

On Tuesday, Lewis mentioned Pitt transfer defensive linemen Samuel Okunlola and Dayon Hayes as players with potential NFL futures. Okunlola and Hayes combined for nine sacks and 16.5 tackles for loss with the Panthers last season, and both have since made their way to Boulder to play for head coach Deion Sanders.

Lewis, a former first-round draft pick who played 10 seasons in the NFL, was asked about what makes Hayes and Okunlola special, and the assistant coach responded by praising their work ethics (h/t Scott Procter of the Coloradoan):

“It’s their motor and attention to detail,” Lewis said of Hayes and Okunlola. “(Hayes) is coming in and doing exactly what we’re asking him to. He’s competing at a high level, he’s turning and running to the ball and he’s exuding some leadership in the room as well.

“Sam just works. You get him out there and he’s going to work. He’s your workhorse and he’s going to do everything you ask him to with the best of his ability. Those guys, I have nothing but positive things for them and I see them possibly having a chance to go play on Sundays.”

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Pittsburgh statistical leaders through seven games

You might recognize a couple of these names.

Notre Dame fans will see a couple of familiar faces when their team battles Pittsburgh. That’s because the Panthers’ top quarterback and running back both once donned the blue and gold. In fact, a lot of the Panthers’ best players are transfers, either because they didn’t get the opportunities they sought at other programs or they wanted to use up college eligibility elsewhere. Either way, many of these Panthers didn’t start as Panthers.

Is that part of the reason the Panthers’ offense isn’t as strong as their defense? Perhaps, but either way, most of this season has not gone well for the Steel City program. The fact that they handled Louisville and the Irish didn’t is not a good look for [autotag]Marcus Freeman[/autotag] and his staff. Alas, nothing can be done to change that now.

Assuming the Panthers can make this a game, here are the players most likely to do that: