This day could have come a year earlier for Daelin Hayes.
He was expected to declare for the 2020 NFL Draft until he suffered a torn labrum four games into the 2019 season. This allowed him to redshirt under current NCAA rules. He returned for a fifth season, where he served the team as a full-time starter at Vyper and a team captain.
The Baltimore Ravens selected Hayes, a 6-3, 253-pounder dubbed an outside linebacker by the team when announcing his selection, in the fifth round of the 2021 NFL Draft. He was the No. 171 overall pick and the seventh Notre Dame player drafted this year.
ESPN's Todd McShay and Mel Kiper Jr. were both fans of the pick, with McShay calling Hayes on the broadcast "one of the steals of day three so far."
"Versatility — they love that in that multiple 3-4, 4-3 front that they run, and that's exactly what Daelin Hayes brings," McShay said. "… He, this past year, finally turned it on; the light bulb came on. The first few years at Notre Dame, he just wasn't all that productive.
"But this past year — six tackles for loss, three sacks. what I loved about him beyond the production was every game I did, and I did three Notre Dame games this year live, and watched a bunch of them on tape, he was always disruptive. From the inside, from the outside, it was putting his hand in the dirt, dropping back into coverage, two-point stance, it didn't matter how you utilized him he was doing something productive to help your defense. I love that about him."
"And a great character kid," Kiper added. "That's the kind of guy you say, 'Play like a Raven,' Daelin Hayes will do that as well."
In 2020, Hayes recorded 3.0 sacks to go with 23 tackles (6.0 for a loss) as the primary Vyper end. He had two forced fumbles and 33 quarterback pressures, per Pro Football Focus.
At Notre Dame’s pro day on March 31, he displayed some impressive athletic traits. He ran a 4.69-second 40-yard dash, 4.29 20-yard shuttle and 7.19 three-cone drill. His broad jump was 119 inches. Hayes also put up 26 reps of 225 lb. in the bench press, two more than Notre Dame offensive lineman and second-round pick Aaron Banks.
With arms just shy of 34 inches and a solid wingspan, he also possesses solid physical measurements.
Hayes’ path to Notre Dame was unconventional. He played in just seven high school football games between his sophomore and senior seasons, but showed well enough at camps to be considered a five-star outside linebacker and No. 31 overall player in the class of 2016, per Rivals.
Hayes initially committed to the USC Trojans before eventually signing with the Fighting Irish.
Since arriving on Notre Dame’s campus as a mid-year enrollee in 2016, Hayes has been a consistent contributor.
He played in all 12 games as a freshman and notched 11 tackles and a forced fumble. As a sophomore, he moved into a starting role and had one of his best statistical seasons at Notre Dame with 30 tackles (6.5 for loss) and 3.0 sacks.
He started the season opener in 2018, but the following week classmate and fellow Vyper Julian Okwara won the job and started the rest of the way. In fairness to Hayes, Okwara ended up registering 8.0 sacks and a ridiculous 61 quarterback pressures that season.
Hayes was set to reprise his backup role in 2019, but then suffered the aforementioned torn labrum that enabled him to return in 2020 and put himself in a position to be drafted.
While his contributions on defense as a fifth-year Vyper helped Notre Dame reach its second College Football Playoff appearance, his most significant impact came from serving underprivileged members of the South Bend community.
Over the last five years, he volunteered at Food Bank of Northern Indiana, South Bend Center for the Homeless and the Boys & Girls Club of St. Joseph County. He also went to Studebaker Elementary School on a weekly basis to read to a class of first-graders and mentored at the South Bend Juvenile Detention Center.
“I wouldn’t be here without countless sacrifices from family, grandparents, mentors and coaches,” Hayes said, “so who am I to take those opportunities and not be able to pay it forward to the next kid, the next generation?
“To be able to serve as a voice of hope, encouragement, love, to give that back — because that was given to me to where I’m at — I’m just extremely thankful and humbled to serve this community. That is a vital part to who I am as a man.”
Per Spotrac’s rookie wage scale, Hayes’ four-year deal will be worth $3,773,210.
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