Bio

Position: Linebacker

Height: 6’2”

Weight: 245

Age: 21

Hometown: East St. Louis, Illinois

Recruiting Class: 2023

Former Team: Illinois

Eligibility Remaining: 2 Seasons – Redshirt Junior

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Transfer Portal Rankings: 3*(87) – National Rank: 597 – Linebacker Rank: 53

High School

Hayden was considered a mid-3*(86), the 92nd-best linebacker and the 969th overall in the 2023 class, coming out of East St. Louis High School, according to the Rivals recruiting industry ranking. His evaluations were all over the place, with On3 considering him a low 3*(83) and Rivals rating him as a solid 4* prospect and a top 25 linebacker in the class. He chose Illinois over listed offers from Mississippi State, Colorado, and Missouri. It appears Purdue poked around as well, but never offered.

At East St. Louis, he was a two-time IHSFCA 6A All-State selection and helped The Flyers win the 2022 IHSA 6A Championship. He broke onto the recruiting scene as a junior when he recorded 117 tackles and six sacks. As a senior, he was credited with 92 tackles and nine tackles-for-loss. He’s joined by three other East St. Louis grads on the Boilermakers roster: Smiley Bradford, Jesse Watson, and Terrell Berryhill.

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High School Highlights

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College Career

2023

Redshirt – Did not appear in any games.

2024

Games Played: 10

Starts: 0

Tackles: 8

Tackles For Loss: .5

2025

Games Played: 12

Starts: 0

Tackles: 26

Tackles For Loss: 1.5

2026 Season Outlook

In the mix to start at linebacker next to Charles Correa.

Thoughts

Purdue’s old/new defensive coordinator, Kevin Kane, helped recruit Hayden to Illinois, and it wasn’t surprising to see him jump on board with his former coach. As I mentioned above, East St. Louis has become a bit of a Purdue pipeline of late, and that’s a good thing. They tend to be loaded with talent.

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JoJo is an old school thumper of a linebacker who can also put his hand in the dirt and come off the edge when the need arises. Purdue had an issue getting ball carriers to the ground last season, and Hayden was brought in to address that situation. He reminds a little of former Boilermaker great Jawhan Bentley because he’s tall for a linebacker but still manages to bend and play with leverage at the point of attack. He can take on pulling guards and tackles without getting swallowed up and having to resort to weak-arm tackles or diving ankle slaps. When Hayden hits someone, they tend to stay hit.

He’s the type of box linebacker that should allow Charles Correa to freelance more around the line of scrimmage. I liked Powell last year, but Purdue needed to keep the second linebacker in the box. Powell and Correa felt almost too similar in their playing style; Hayden brings something a little different to the party. Coach Kane knows what he brings to the table, and that gives me confidence that he can function as intended in this defense. He’s not a sideline-to-sideline ball hawk, but he can stop a running back dead in his tracks instead of holding on to a leg and hoping someone shows up to help. He should bring some much-needed bite to a defense that was overpowered at the point of attack at times last season.

As things stand now, I think he’ll start next to Correa, but that might depend on the opponent. The more run-heavy an opponent is, the more you’re going to see Hayden on the field. I’m not sure you want him in coverage all that much, but again, he didn’t come to Purdue to cover tight ends; he came to abruptly stop running backs from advancing the ball up the field in the A and B gaps. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s more of a first and second down linebacker with a more coverage-oriented backer coming in on obvious passing downs.

Purdue allowed 246 rushing yards a game last season. That was good for 114th in the country. If a defense can’t stop the run, the offense can dictate the game. It’s imperative that the Purdue defense improve on first and second down so they can actually use their pass rush. It’s hard to make stops when you’re constantly in 3rd and short, and the offense has the entire playbook at its disposal. Hayden is at Purdue to help fix first- and second-down. He looks the part and showed some flashes for Illinois last season, but he’s going to need to be a consistent contributor for the Boilermakers in 2026. His career has progressed steadily from redshirting to a special team contributor to a role player, and now, as a redshirt junior, he should be ready to make the jump to starter.

Purdue desperately needs him to be good.

I think he will be, but as always, I’m just some guy from the internet.