After averaging over 35 points per game at the Rayville, Louisiana high school, "The Big E" joined Don Chaney to become the first two African Americas to play for the University of Houston. A small center at just 6-foot-9, Hayes out-dueled UCLA's Lew Alcindor (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) in the January 20th, 1968 "Game of the Century". He led the Houston Cougars to the NCAA Final Four. Hayes was named Sporting News' 1968 Player of the Year.