Justice Haynes (born August 23, 2004) is an American

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...

for the

Michigan Wolverines The Michigan Wolverines comprise 29 varsity sports teams at the University of Michigan. These teams compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA's NCAA Division I, Division I and in the Big Ten Conference in all sports except wo ...

. He previously played for the

Alabama Crimson Tide The Alabama Crimson Tide refers to the college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic varsity teams that represent the University of Alabama, located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Tuscaloosa. The Crimson Tide teams compete in the Na ...

Early life

Haynes was born on August 23, 2004, and grew up in

Buford, Georgia Buford is a city in Gwinnett County, Georgia, Gwinnett and Hall County, Georgia, Hall counties in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 17,144. Most of th ...

. He first attended

Blessed Trinity Catholic High School Blessed Trinity Catholic High School, also known as Blessed Trinity or, informally BT, is an Archdiocesan Catholic high school in Roswell, Georgia, United States, a northern suburb of Atlanta. The multi-level curriculum provides Advanced Placeme ...

Roswell, Georgia Roswell is a city in northern Fulton County, Georgia, United States. At the official 2020 census, the city had a population of 92,883, making Roswell the state's ninth largest city. A suburb of Atlanta, Roswell has an affluent National Registe ...

, where he played

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

and

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

. As a freshman, he ran for 1,754 yards and 18

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

s, helping Blessed Trinity win the Georgia state championship. In the

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

-shortened 2020 season, he played in nine games but still managed to run for 1,750 yards and 25 touchdowns, averaging 9.9 yards-per-carry. In 2021, he ran for 2,375 yards and 29 touchdowns, averaging 8.6 yards-per-carry. In 2022, Haynes transferred to Buford High School for his senior season, ending his career at Blessed Trinity running for close to 6,000 yards and 72 touchdowns. In his lone year at Buford, he averaged 11.1 yards-per-carry and ran for 1,695 yards while scoring 26 total touchdowns. As a five-star prospect, Haynes was invited to play in the

All-American Bowl The All-American Bowl was an annual postseason college football bowl game played at Legion Field in Birmingham, Alabama from 1977 to 1990. The game was known as the Hall of Fame Classic from 1977 to 1985. In 1986, the National Football Foundatio ...

. He was ranked as the nation's best

, and the 29th overall player by

Rivals A rivalry is the state of two people or Social group, groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each ...

. Haynes committed to play

for

Nick Saban Nicholas Lou Saban Jr. ( ; born October 31, 1951) is an American sportscaster and former Professional gridiron football, professional and college football coach. He serves as an analyst for ESPN's ''College GameDay (football TV program), Colleg ...

and the

College career

Alabama

In 2023, Haynes enrolled at the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, the Capstone, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of ...

and saw playing time as a true freshman. He ended the season with 25 rush attempts for 168 yards and two touchdowns. Haynes scored his first two collegiate touchdowns against

Chattanooga Chattanooga ( ) is a city in Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. It is located along the Tennessee River and borders Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the south. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, it is Tennessee ...

, and saw key carries in the

2024 Rose Bowl The 2024 Rose Bowl (officially known as the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the 2024 Rose Bowl Game presented by Prudential for sponsorship reasons) was a college football bowl game played on January 1, 2024, at the Rose Bowl (stadium), Ro ...

. In 2024, Haynes played in all twelve regular season games, starting in six for the Crimson Tide as a sophomore. He carried the ball 79 times for 448 yards and seven touchdowns, adding 17 receptions for 99 yards. Haynes finished tied for second on the team in rushing touchdowns, third in rushing yards and fourth in receptions. On December 13, 2024, Haynes entered the

NCAA transfer portal The NCAA transfer portal is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) application, database, and compliance tool created to manage and facilitate the process for student athletes seeking to transfer between member institutions. It is i ...

after two seasons with Alabama.

Michigan

On December 24, 2024, Haynes transferred to the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

, to play under

head coach

Sherrone Moore Sherrone Banfield Moore (first name , born February 3, 1986) is an American college football coach and former player. He is the head football coach for the University of Michigan. Moore served as Michigan's acting head coach in four games during ...

Personal life

Haynes' father, Verron, played for the

Georgia Bulldogs The Georgia Bulldogs are the College athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Georgia. The Bulldogs compete in NCAA Division I and are members of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The offic ...

in college, as well as the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

and

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL).

References

External links

Alabama Crimson Tide bioMichigan Wolverines bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Haynes, Justice 2004 births Living people American football running backs Sportspeople from Buford, Georgia Players of American football from Gwinnett County, Georgia Buford High School (Georgia) alumni Alabama Crimson Tide football players