Ryan Hayes reacts to offensive line winning Joe Moore Award
Redshirt sophomore offensive tackle Ryan Hayes is tasked with holding down the left side for Michigan football. It is one of the most critical roles on what is now officially the best offensive line in college football.
The unit was gifted the Joe Moore Award on Tuesday evening, which is awarded to the best unit in the trenches in the nation. Moments after winning the honor, Hayes spoke to the media inside the Towsley Museum.
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“It was pretty cool,” he said. “It just got announced that we won the Joe Moore Award. Just a pretty incredible feeling. It’s really an honor because they just explained how prestigious the award is and how much goes into it, so it was pretty cool.”
Hayes called Michigan’s step forward as an offensive line a group accomplishment. No one player was better than the other. Much of the credit goes to offensive line coach Sherrone Moore in his first season helming the position.
“It’s just a collective effort from everybody,” Hayes said. “I think the last few years have been building up. We’re just getting better and better and this year with Coach Moore, he just brought us together as one and we’ve just kind of been excelling throughout the year and I think we’re playing our best football now at the end of the year. It feels pretty good.
“I think it’s just the level of teamwork and the love we have for each other. Just we all are working together as one and it’s not any individuals out there. That plays a big part of it.
Moore switched over to the offensive line after coaching the tight ends last season. He played the position at Oklahoma from 2006-07, so he had the know-how necessary to make the change. It was just what the doctor ordered for Michigan football.
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“He just brings a lot of knowledge because he obviously played offensive line,” Hayes said. “He’s brought a lot of knowledge to the group, a lot of teamwork stuff. He’s really good at making us play our best ball. We want to play for him. We’re all in there together.
“I just think he gets on us at the right times. We just know what he expects from us. He’s got really high expectations. We know that, so stuff like that.”
The bond created this season in Michigan’s offensive line room emanated throughout the entire roster. The players up front set the tone for the team’s chemistry.
“It’s meant everything,” Hayes said. “I’ve never really been a part of a team like this before, that we’re all just in it together. We all have a common goal. We’re not just playing for ourselves out there, we’re playing for the guy next to us and that’s I think when you really excel as a team is when that starts to happen.”
Hayes and Michigan are back in action on Dec. 31 in the Orange Bowl against the Georgia Bulldogs in the College Football Playoff semifinal.
