WPIAL star, Penn State football RB commit ‘will be ready to play soon’ after injury

Future Penn State football running back Tiqwai Hayes is expected to quickly return to the gridiron after being sidelined this week with an injury. The Aliquippa standout and 2025 Nittany Lions commit was kept out Friday night in the Quips’ 42-17 victory over Mars as a precaution.

“We wanted to keep him out tonight,” Aliquippa coach Vashawn Patrick told Ethan Morrison of the Beaver County Times. “We wanted to be more safe than sorry because we have a long and vigorous season ahead of us. Tikey will be ready to play soon.”

While Patrick did not speak to the specific concern, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that Hayes suffered a hamstring injury. Sophomore Sa’Nir Brooks rushed for three touchdowns in his place. Aliquippa moved to 3-0 on the season.

© Ethan Morrison / The Beaver County Times / USA TODAY NETWORK

A three-star prospect, Tiqwai Hayes is the No. 38 running back in the nation and the 13th-ranked player in the state, according to the On3 Industry Rankings for the 2025 recruiting cycle. Hayes was the 2023 WPIAL Player of the Year after rushing for 2,129 yards and 26 touchdowns as a junior.

Hayes joins Jabree Wallace-Coleman as the two running backs pledged to the Nittany Lions in 2025 following Kiandrea Barker’s decommitment in August. Penn State football has the No. 16 class in the 2025 recruiting cycle per On3.

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