The Josh Hayes era, brief as it was, three games in total, has come to an end, with word that the North Dakota State transfer cornerback is headed back to the transfer portal.
Hayes only got 31 defensive snaps for Virginia in his three-game stint, which only began in Week 4 against Wake Forest due to an injury he suffered in training camp.
And, as much as the headlines and ledes from other news sources are telling you that this is a blow, the numbers would tell you otherwise.
Hayes got 31 snaps because that’s probably what he’d earned.
His Pro Football Focus season grade is just 36.3. He was only in for eight coverage snaps, saw one target, and that pass was completed for a 36-yard gain.
The writing was probably on the wall from Week 6, when he got just five snaps in the 34-33 win over Louisville.
UVA coach Bronco Mendenhall was asked if he could reveal anything about any conversations he’d had with Hayes before he made the call to enter the transfer portal.
“Probably not. Most of those things are personal and private, and I think it’s best to keep it that way,” Mendenhall said. “I just really, really always want every player that comes to our program to have a magical experience and to be completely fulfilled, and that’s what they want, especially when you consider graduate transfers, and usually the very first thing I say to them is, you have to get this right, this decision, and we have to get this right. Most of the time at UVA it has been, and then for various reasons, sometimes it’s not ideal for one side or the other.
“I love Josh, he’s an amazing kid, young person, and we’ll see where that goes for his future. I really hope it’s exactly as he wants it to be,” Mendenhall said.
Story by Chris Graham
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Chris Graham
