Sept. 7, 2008
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State defensive end Jerome Hayes (Bayonne, N.J.) will miss the remainder of the 2008 season after suffering a serious knee injury in Saturday's 45-14 victory over Oregon State.
A redshirt junior, Hayes tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee during a play in the fourth quarter, according to Dr. Wayne Sebastianelli, Penn State Director of Athletic Medicine. Hayes will have surgery within the next 2-3 weeks and rehabilitation will take approximately nine months, according to Sebastianelli.
Making his first career start in the contest vs. the Beavers, Hayes will be sidelined for the second consecutive year by a serious knee injury. During the 2007 season, he tore the ACL in his right knee on Oct. 13 against Wisconsin, missing the last six games of the season.
Hayes took a redshirt season as true freshman in 2005.
The season-ending injury to Hayes is the fourth to hit the Nittany Lions this season, all on the defensive side of the ball. In April, standout senior linebacker Sean Lee (Pittsburgh) suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee during a practice. Lee was elected an honorary captain for this season and plans to return as a fifth-year senior in 2009. During pre-season camp, redshirt freshman DT Devon Still (Wilmington, Del.) broke his left ankle. Still missed the 2007 season after tearing the ACL in his left knee during pre-season camp. Also in mid-August, redshirt freshman safety Nick Sukay (Mt. Pleasant) had surgery for sesmoiditis in his right foot and will likely be sidelined for the remainder of the season.
A former U.S. Army All-American from Bayonne High School, Hayes made three tackles in the first two contests, with two vs. Oregon State. In 2007, the 6-2, 248-pound Hayes made 17 tackles (10 solo) with three tackles for losses, including 2.5 sacks for minus 13 yards this season on defense and special teams. Hayes made a career-best six stops (five solo) with a TFL at Michigan.
During the 2006 season, Hayes played in eight games, missing five contests with an early season foot injury. He made five tackles last season on defense and special teams.
Coach Joe Paterno's squad improved to 2-0 with the win over the Beavers. The Nittany Lions rolled to 454 yards (239 rushing/215 passing), grabbing a 35-7 halftime time lead and holding OSU to 92 rushing yards in the first meeting between the schools.
The No. 17 Nittany Lions visit Syracuse on Saturday, Sept. 13 at 3:30 p.m. in the first meeting between the old rivals since 1990. The game will air on ABC and on ESPN GamePlan as well as the Penn State Sports Network and GoPSUsports.com, the official website of Penn State Athletics.
Penn State's ticket allotment for the Syracuse game is sold out, but other tickets remain and can purchased at: http://www.suathletics.com/tickets.asp.