He played college football at Central Michigan as a linebacker and defensive end and was signed by the Houston Texans as an undrafted free agent in 2022.

In 2018, his first year on the football team, Hairston appeared in 11 games and recorded five tackles, four solo.

At Eastern Michigan on November 27, he made a career-high 11 tackles (1.5 for-loss) and recovered a fumble.

He earned All-MAC first-team honors, as well as second-team placement by Phil Steele and Pro Football Focus.

[2] After going unselected in the 2022 NFL draft, Hairston was signed by the Houston Texans as an undrafted free agent.