Ryan Day explains Dallan Hayden's lack of usage in Michigan game

Ohio State dropped its final game of the regular season to rival Michigan, in part because injuries at running back sidelined TreVeyon Henderson and severely limited Miyan Williams. But those circumstances also made Dallan Hayden‘s lack of usage equally surprising.

Hayden logged only two carries for seven yards, despite having rushed 46 times for 248 yards and four touchdowns in the previous two weeks.

“It was just kind of the flow of the game, and (running backs coach and run game coordinator) Tony (Alford) makes that decision based on how things are going,” coach Ryan Day explained.

Instead of Hayden getting plenty of touches, the bulk of them went to Chip Trayanum. He finished with 14 carries for 83 yards, a solid enough output that Day was pleased.

“I thought in the game that Chip ran well,” he said. “I thought he did some really good things, especially for his first game getting put into that environment. Certainly looking forward to getting some health back in that room, but Dallan’s going to be a big part of this bowl game.”

Dallan Hayden’s lack of usage unlikely to continue

Day seemed a touch uncomfortable answering repeated questions about Dallan Hayden’s lack of usage against the Wolverines, instead opting to note there wasn’t anything he had done poorly that led to that and insisting he’ll be used going forward.

One reporter asked if ball security was a primary driver in his playing time — of note, Hayden has yet to fumble in a game this year.

“The ball security is just something we talk about all the time as running backs,” Day said. “It’s just the No. 1 thing, is when you hand the ball off, they’ve got to do a great job of that. So no, that didn’t play into the decision at all.”

So what does Hayden have to do?

“It’s just kind of the way the game went,” Day said. “It just got a little, down the stretch, a little more in protection. So let Tony handle that part of it. But Dallan wants to play and he’s going to continue to play.”