Career
He retired as the athletic director at Winston-Salem State University in 2014. Hayes served as the head football coach at Winston-Salem State from 1976 to 1987 and at North Carolina A&T State University from 1988 to 2003, compiling a career college football record of 195–104–2. In 27 seasons as a head coach, Hayes has the distinction of being the winningest coach at both football programs.
He is an alumnus of North Carolina Central University.
Hayes started his coaching career as a running backs coach on the coaching staff at Wake Forest University, from 1973 to 1975, making him the first African-American coach in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Aggies also appeared in the now defunct post-season HBCU bowl game, the Heritage Bowl in 1991.
Hayes coached a number of players who went to play in the NFL or Canadian Football League: Timmy Newsome (running back), Donald Evans (defensive end), and Anthony Blaylock (defensive back) from Winston-Salem State, and Jamain Stephens (offensive lineman), Curtis Deloatch (defensive back), Maurice Hicks (running back), Michael Basnight (running back), Jamal Jones (wide receiver), Junius Coston (offensive line), Qasim Mitchell (offensive lineman) from North Carolina A&T.
Hayes became a university administrator after he ended his coaching career. He served as athletic director at his alma mater, North Carolina Central University in Durham, North Carolina, from 2003 to 2007, Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University in Tallahassee, Florida from December 2007 to December 2009, and Winston-Salem State University from 2010 to 2014.