Jermane Hayes packed up and started over at Memphis — the fit is the whole question.
5′10″ · 160 lb · Orange City, FL · University HS
The numbers
receiving yards · 2026 · through week 3
Swing playSwung Memphis from 53% to 77% to win.Arkansas State at Memphis · 42-24
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
Sophomore wide receiver for Memphis. 2026: 16 catches, 119 receiving yards, 1 TD.
Jermane Hayes
Jermane Hayes arrives at Memphis with a new fit to prove and an old chapter behind him.
AI-generated narrative · may contain errors · not journalism · updated 2026-09-22
His career
Career arc
Coaching lineage · 2025–2026
2 coachesCoaching transition mid-career: Ryan Silverfield → Charles Huff. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
Where He Ended Up · Transfer
Transferred to Memphis
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Memphis | 16 | 119 | 7.4 | 1 | -- |
| 2025 | Southern Miss | 4 | 36 | 9.0 | 0 | -- |
| Career | 20 | 155 | 7.8 | 1 | -- |
Game by game
Point color shows the opponent's defensive strength that week (red = weaker defense, blue = stronger) — dashed line is this player's own season average.
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 4 games
| Wk | Opp | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 27-21@ UNLV | 3 | 22 | 7.3 | 0 | 11 | |
| Wk 1 | W 42-24vs Arkansas State | 3 | 35 | 11.7 | 1 | 31 | |
| Wk 2 | L 20-38@ Boise State | 2 | 5 | 2.5 | 0 | 5 | |
| Wk 3 | W 45-21vs UT Martin | 8 | 57 | 7.1 | 0 | 14 | Season-high 57 yds |
| Total | 16 | 119 | 7.2 | 1 | 31 |
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 3 · 2026
W 45–21
vs UT Martin
8 rec · 57 yds
Dominant 24-point win at home against UT Martin.
With M. Stokes — 258 yds · 4 TD · 0 INT · QBR 80.4 · 2 rush yds (3 car) · J. Thompson — 110 rush yds (6 car) · 1 TD
Signature plays · top plays by |EPA|
The plays that mattered most
Since week 2: +57 receiving yards, +8 catches.
Season context · Team result + system
Where this profile ranks vs the WR cohort
Box-score percentiles
Concern: yards / catch (5th percentile).
Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score rates.
Receiver profile · Targets, catch rate, and throw depth
How often he's targeted, and how well it works
Targets
1920% of team targetsCatch rate
84%16 of 19 targetsBehind LOS · Negative air yds
Short · 0–9 air yds
Middle · 10–19 air yds
Deep · 20+ air yds
84% catch rate on 19 targets · 20% of the team's targets.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 4 games
Home vs Road
| REC/g | YDS/g | YPR | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home2g | 5.5 | 46.0 | 9.4 | 0.5 |
| Road2g | 2.5 | 13.5 | 4.9 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| REC/g | YDS/g | YPR | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-74g | 4.0 | 29.8 | 7.1 | 0.2 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Charles Huff
Pass share
40.7%
101 pass / 147 run
Plays / game
62.0
4 games
Team sack rate
4.4%
114 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-leaning, slow tempo.
Player standing · 2026
Earning real snaps in the rotation without a starting job.
Play style
Moves the chains on third down.
CFB Index positional classification
The No. 1,500 recruit in the country is starting at receiver in the American Athletic as a sophomore.
Player DNA
Reliable target who converts on critical downs. Not flashy; consistently productive.
His 2026 production profile sits closest to Joshua Bowen’s 2015 season.
Matches Joshua on
Through 2 college seasons, his career arc tracks closest to Benjamin Omayebu’s path through Tarleton State.
Benjamin Omayebu
K.J. Franklin
Ty Durham
Cyrus Wallace
Kylon Harris
Matches Benjamin on
As a sophomore, his production profile tracks closest to Dennis Murray Jr.'s sophomore season at Georgia State (2025).
Matches Dennis on
Differs from Dennis on
8 more on the roster · Memphis team page