Game log · Week-by-week
2025 season · 2 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 24-16vs Toledo | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 5 | L 13-35@ South Carolina | 3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 3 tackles |
| Total | 5 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 |
#97
Josaih Hayes
Senior defensive lineman on Kentucky's 2025 roster.
6′3″ · 322 lb · Horn Lake, MS
CFB Index 47 · #227 of 418 edge rushersLow confidenceReturning to Kentucky for 2026
CFB Index
A single number blending on-field production (an EPA-based value lane) with box-score output for this player's position.
0-100, scaled within each position's own cohort — not directly comparable across positions.
The numbers
0
sacks · 2025
5 tackles
2 games into 2025 so far -- Best game: 2 tackles, vs Toledo
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
4 defensive lineman on Kentucky's 2025 roster.
- Signed as a 4-star recruit to Kentucky in 2020.
Josaih Hayes
Controls the point of attack and doesn't move. This is his sixth year in the same defensive front at Kentucky. The receipt: 3 tackles against South Carolina — Week 5, 2025.
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- positional archetype classification
- seasons on the roster
- game log
His career
He was on the field for 6 seasons. That is rarer than it sounds.
2020
- Signed with Kentucky4-star out of Horn Lake
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★★
CFB
College
Kentucky
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2020–2025
1 coach2020–2025
Kentucky
Played his entire career under Mark Stoops.
2025 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
6 seasons under Mark Stoops — 38-36 over that span.
2020Kentucky5-6HC: Mark Stoops · Run-heavy
2021Kentucky10-3HC: Mark Stoops · Run-leaning
2022Kentucky7-6HC: Mark Stoops · Run-leaning, slow tempo
2023Kentucky7-6HC: Mark Stoops · Balanced, slow tempo
2024Kentucky4-8HC: Mark Stoops · Run-leaning, slow tempo
2025Kentucky5-7HC: Mark Stoops · Run-leaning
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
Medium confidence
Concern: tackles (0th percentile).
Box-score production (6)
Percentiles are versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score production. There are no play-by-play efficiency bars here: CFBD's play-value model credits offensive players only, so no defensive EPA exists to rank.
Splits & context
Splits
Per-game splits
Through 2 games: 2.5 TKL/g, 0.0 TFL/g, 0.0 SACK/g, 0.0 PD/g — splits start at 3 games.
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Will Stein
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2023
Rotational
Tackle volume for the position in rotation-piece range.
Recognition
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Production · CFB Index Score
47 · #227 of 418 edge rushers
Former four-star. Now #227 at the position.
Career stats
Game log
How he plays
Play style
The heaviest frame on the interior. Sack production is intentionally not the point of this profile.
CFB Index positional classification
2026 Outlook
Kentucky
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Defensive line · Kentucky
Returning around him
- 4 Kentucky players drafted to NFL
- Transfer portal: +4 net (31 in / 27 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Kentucky · Last season: 5-7 · Talent rank #23 · 2026 recruiting class #60
DNA match
Player DNA
Nose Anchor
The heaviest frame on the interior. Sack production is intentionally not the point of this profile.
IDL
His 2023 production profile sits closest to Tyleik Williams’s 2023 season.
90%match
All-Big TenNFL Rd 1 · Pk 28
Matches Tyleik on
Class year
TFL rate
Sack rate
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a senior, his production profile tracks closest to Tyleik Williams's senior season at Ohio State (2024).
90%match
All-Big TenNFL Rd 1 · Pk 28
Matches Tyleik on
Class year
Weight
Sack rate
Player DNA
Players who play like Josaih Hayes
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology