Dallan Hayden details first Heupel conversation

Vol Legacy Dallan Hayden held his first conversation with Tennessee’s new head football coach Josh Heupel late Wednesday night.

Well, maybe not his first, but the first in a few years. Heupel, while at Missouri, also recruited Dallan’s brother, Chase.

Nonetheless, it was a good start as the Volunteers continue their pitch for in-state talent.

“He’s a guy who cares about his family. He wants everyone to be a family,” Hayden told Volquest. “He asked about my family and how everything was going. He is just a really easy guy to talk to. The conversation had a great flow.”

The new Tennessee coach had two messages for Hayden and they were simple.

“He said Tennessee is going to start putting up some points and that he wants to keep guys in state,” the four-star said. “He wants me to be a part of this group of talent that stays home and comes to Tennessee. He wants to showcase an electric offense and wants me to be a part of it.

“He said he plans to build the program back up to where it was.”

All the talk about Heupel since coming to Knoxville has been on offense. And rightfully so as his squads finished in the top-six in total offense every season he was at the helm in Orlando. The 2020 unit actually finished second in the nation.

With that comes the passing game conversation. But, running backs have had their fair share of success in Heupel’s offense as well.

“It’s exciting to think about the productive numbers I could put up in this offense,” Hayden said. “I could catch the ball out of the backfield too. I could develop even more in that regard. I’m a versatile guy.”

The Christian Brothers star had an incredible junior campaign in 2020 – one that finished with a Mr. Tennessee Football award and two honors from MaxPreps – the Tennessee Player of the Year award and an All-American tab.

“Those honors mean a lot to me,” Hayden admitted. “Last season as a sophomore, I felt like I did alright, but I knew I could do much better. I put in the work that offseason and it has paid off.

“So, I can continue to develop. I typically just run the ball, but I have caught several screens and lined up in the slot sometimes.”

The 6-foot-0, 195-pound athlete announced his top-4 on New Year’s Day, a list that included Tennessee, Ohio State, Oregon and Notre Dame.

Wanting to play running back, these four programs are giving him that chance to do just that. And Tennessee will always be in the running considering his father, Aaron, is a letterman.

But when it comes down to it, it’s going to be a business decision for Hayden.

“I know a lot of these guys in-state. I’m friends with Ty Simpson, Jordan James, Isaiah Horton and a lot of these guys,” Hayden concluded. “It would be pretty cool to play with them and if that happens at Tennessee, that’s cool. But we all have to do what’s best for us.

“Coach Heupel is trying to recruit and keep us in-state and he’s already reached out to a number of us. That shows us that we are priorities, so that’s pretty cool.”

Hayden currently has a 5.8 Rivals Rating.