Justice Hayes, a Former Notre Dame Verbal, Commits to Michigan

Onetime Notre Dame verbal commit Justice Hayes, who withdrew his commitment to the Irish on Sunday, committed to the University of Michigan on Monday.

Hayes, who is a 4-star recruit out of Grand Blanc, Michigan, which is about 35 miles from Ann Arbor, hasn't played since mid-September after undergoing season-ending wrist surgery.

The 5'10", 175-pound running back has 4.4 speed. He was named to the Rivals All-NIKE Camp Team last July.

He finished his injury-shortened senior year with 210 yards rushing on 34 carries.

I had the opportunity to scout Justice Hayes early in the season. This is a copy of the report that I sent to Jason Sapp, recruiting editor at Blue & Gold Illustrated, on September 13, 2010.

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"Jason, I had a chance to see Justice Hayes on Friday. His numbers were: 16 rushes for 60 yds 3.8 ypc avg. 11 catches 98 yds 8.9 ypc 1 td rec. His acceleration was amazing, but he seemed almost hesitant as he hit the line, once he got past the line he had a lot of slash type moves. He played taller than 5'11", long legs with almost Eric Dickerson type strides. He covered the ball well two hands going through the holes, but he did fumble once at the line of scrimmage. I really wasn’t impressed at how he hit the holes. He lined up at tailback, wide receiver and set back in a twins set, I didn't see them run a wildcat. He didn’t hesitate to block, he threw two blocks on one play as a pass protector."

"He ran great routes and his hands were exceptional, his td catch was a 21 yd snag in the back of the end zone under good coverage. He lined up deep on kick returns but was never kicked to, didn’t seem overly eager to block on special teams."

"After each offensive series he came off the field and right to the position coach, and was cheering on the defense."

"Overall I was impressed with his hands and character, on 1st and goal from the four with the score tied in the fourth the fullback got the ball three times, and on fourth down Hayes was pulled and a lineman was put in the backfield, so he got no touches but seemed to handle it ok. I see him as a receiver. Jim"

This information was only shared with a few of my Bleacher Report colleagues, as well as Jason Sapp.

Losing Justice Hayes to Michigan is not as devastating as it might appear to some, in my opinion. I only saw Hayes play live once, but I did see some film of him as well. I was never impressed with how he hit the holes, and I really saw Hayes as a Duval Kamara type.

While watching Grand Blanc, I was actually more impressed with junior fullback Deitrick Goff, who had just transferred from a prep school in Mississippi—a 6'4", 230-pound crusher who ran the ball 21 times for 187 yards and two touchdowns.

With Notre Dame coming off two wins in which the running game was utilized more than any other time this season and Michigan losing this weekend, I have to say that I was somewhat surprised by Hayes' timing, although the fact that Savon Huggins (running back, New Jersey) was attending the game at Yankee Stadium may have played a role.

Hayes stated that he didn't feel that the Irish were giving him the attention that he deserved. I think that Notre Dame openly courting Huggins, who is a solid running back ranked far ahead of Hayes, may have been a factor.

Looking at Justice Hayes' Facebook page, some of the Irish faithful are getting somewhat nasty. I ask Notre Dame fans to keep it classy. These are the types of things that separate Notre Dame fans from other fans; Notre Dame fans carry themselves with a type of class that isn't found in any other fanbase.

Some may feel that losing Justice Hayes is a terrible situation. However, in the long run the 5'10", 175-pounder that is timid hitting the holes may someday be a serviceable receiver in Ann Arbor, but I don't think that losing him to Michigan will carry any ill effects in the long run, and it may actually open the door for Savon Huggins.