Ohio State first-year running back Dallan Hayden (5) celebrates with his teammates during the No. 3 Ohio State-Toledo game Saturday. Ohio State won 77-21. Credit: Zachary Rilley | Photo Editor
During Saturday’s game between No. 3 Ohio State and Toledo, third-year quarterback C.J. Stroud pulled first-year running back Dallan Hayden aside in the backfield.
Hayden entered the contest against the Rockets midway through the second quarter after making his college debut against Arkansas State Sept. 10. Stroud said he told Hayden “to take a deep breath with me” and shared motivation with the young Buckeye.
“I definitely just gave him some early confidence, just going in there,” Stroud said. “Just told him, ‘Man, you been playing this game since you been 6 years old. It’s the same game you’ve been playing. Just go out there, have fun.’”
A four-star recruit coming from Memphis, Tennessee, Hayden joined Ohio State’s program in the summer. He quickly acclimated to the Buckeyes, noting his knack to “always go full speed” was something he needed to adjust at the college level.
Hayden is no stranger to success on the gridiron. He earned Tennessee Titans Mr. Football during his high school career and rushed for over 2,000 yards in each of his final two seasons at Christian Brothers High School.
What was a bit more unfamiliar to Hayden, he said, was playing meaningful minutes early in his career at Ohio State. That exhibited itself Saturday when second-year running back TreVeyon Henderson was limited due to an ailment that saw him visit the locker room but return to the sideline in the first half.
“You’re going to have some nerves,” Hayden said. “I played last week, but that was towards the end. This is the first time I was in with the ones earlier in the game, so I had a little nerves, but I was fine after the first couple carries.”
Hayden moved up Ohio State’s depth chart at running back after second-year Evan Pryor suffered a season-ending knee injury during the preseason. Making his debut against the Red Wolves, Hayden averaged over three yards per carry after entering in the fourth quarter.
Against Toledo, Hayden led all players with 108 rushing yards across 17 carries. He scored the first touchdown of his career on a 1-yard gain with 13:49 remaining in the fourth quarter.
Hayden found the end zone plenty in his high school career, notching over 50 touchdowns as an upperclassman, but he said football has felt challenging since arriving at Ohio State.
“Most of the time I felt like I was the fastest, strongest, so like it was a little easier in high school,” Hayden said. “It feels different in college because you’re going against guys just like you. They’re on scholarship. They’re at their place for a reason.”
Head coach Ryan Day said Hayden has “practiced well” and earned his carries, coming from protecting the football and gaining trust from the coaching staff.
“He’s done that in practice, so to see him in this — for his first time out — play like this, you can see his quickness in the hole,” Day said. “He’s got good vision. He’s got power, and he’s got a chance to be a really good back.”
Hayden notched back-to-back runs of nine yards on both of his first two carries Saturday, then broke free for a 45-yard gain near the start of the third quarter that nearly went for a touchdown but spotted the ball at Toledo’s 3-yard line.
Hayden said he’s been taken in “like a little brother” by Henderson and third-year running back Miyan Williams. Now just three games into his college career, Hayden said he’s learning the “mental piece of the game” that’s helping him find success early at Ohio State.
“Learning a new playbook, learning over, like, I don’t know how ever many plays we have. It’s different than high school,” Hayden said. “I would just study my notes, study my playbook after practice every day, watch film. I feel like that helped me a lot.”
