Why Team Relationships Helped Clemson RB Jay Haynes Get Back to Playing

Two seasons ago, Clemson running back Jay Haynes was the backup running back and preparing to be the next starter for the Tigers going forward. A torn ACL in December 2024 changed that.

Since then, Haynes has been rehabbing from the injury, taking him nearly seven months to trust his knee again before missing the entirety of the 2025 season. However, he wasn’t alone throughout his recovery process.

He had the entire position group, beginning with running backs coach, C.J. Spiller.

“He’s really like a father to me now,” Haynes said on Wednesday. “Obviously, with me coming to college, that’s kind of what all the coaches take in, being a father to the guys that they recruited. But Coach Spiller, he always stayed on me; he never let me slack off at all.”

Injuries are also a mental challenge for many of these student-athletes, especially if its one that has them away from the football field for a long time. However, with Haynes, Spiller still held him accountable in the film room, although he couldn’t show it on the field.

“He made sure I was sharp, even in meeting when I wasn’t obviously playing last year, still asking me questions in the meeting, still drawing on the board, trying to make sure I see all these gaps and schemes and making sure I know how all the blocking and stuff goes,” the running back said.

Another close relationship that Haynes has is with his freshman year roommate, and another player that missed the 2025 season: Jarvis Green. With both going through recovery processes over the course of last season, as well as this spring, it helped both players with being focused on rehab.

Of course, the competitive nature of a college athlete also pushes another to do the same.

“You kind of get a little competitive with that too, because when you see each other, you don’t want to let each other slack off,” Haynes said. “Some days, you’re going to feel tired, you don’t want to do anything, but I was able to lean on Jarvis, and then Jarvis was able to lean on me.”

Throughout the process, the Roanoke, Alabama native was able to learn a lot about the relationships that he had, and his with Green illuminated that. He called him “one of the main guys that really helped” him get back to the field last weekend, recording nine carries for 25 yards.

It was the first time he saw game action in 679 days. However, the preparation has always been the same with the close-knit relationships that he has.

“I felt like everything didn’t change from me playing to me not playing,” Haynes said. “It was all the same process, and the same thing.”

Haynes and the Tigers will be back in action against Virginia Tech this weekend. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. from Memorial Stadium.

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