“It’s going to be a fun couple of days,” said Hayes, a former NFL tight end for the Chiefs and Steelers who coached the Cincinnati tight ends under head coach Marvin Lewis from 2003-18. “We’ve been working hard, but it’s fun work because, as football guys, this is what we do and what we’ve been doing for years.

“Our goal is to add as many quality football players as possible. You want guys who fit your style, obviously, but at least some of that style will be determined by the type of players we get in this draft. Bottom line, we want to build a team that’s tough and physical on both sides of the ball.”

St. Louisan Kurt Hunzeker, who most recently worked as vice president of marketing strategy research for minor league baseball, is the president of the BattleHawks. He’s spent much of the fall getting feedback at area high school football games and will end up at nearly 60 such contests this fall.