He captained the team to victory at the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association Championship and was named an All-American for his efforts – the first basketball player to earn the honor at the University of Kentucky.

After graduating in 1922 Hayden took on a number of different jobs and was called to coach the University of Kentucky's basketball team in 1926 following the departure of Ray Eklund.

Hayden was born in Stanford, Kentucky; his father Joseph was a grocer, and his mother Annie (née: Brown) was a tutor.

He then taught and coached at George Rogers Clark High School while taking a job in the insurance business in Richmond, Kentucky.

In 1926 he was called to replace Ray Eklund as the head basketball coach at the University of Kentucky but was given only one week to prepare for the task with a team made up of unskilled members.

[8] When Harry Gamage was named the new head coach of the university's football squad, he had Hayden replaced with John Mauer.

[9] After his experiment with coaching, Hayden went returned to the insurance business and also worked as a banker, accountant, a hospital administrator,[9] school teacher, and Kentucky state bank inspector.