Big 12 football 2019 season preview: Can Jalen Hurts keep Oklahoma on top of Texas?

Freshman of the Year: Jadon Haselwood, Oklahoma

Though Alabama graduate transfer Jalen Hurts may not be the same level of passer as his predecessors at Oklahoma, Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray, he’s not inept in that regard by any stretch. More importantly, we’ve seen that Lincoln Riley consistently puts his quarterbacks in a position to succeed throwing the ball with his play designs.

However, the Sooners have a huge target share that needs to be accounted for. Yes, wide receiver CeeDee Lamb and tight end Mark Calcaterra are two of the top players at their respective positions in college football but the Sooners did lose Marquise “Hollywood” Brown to the NFL, meaning someone is going to have to step up and, though not necessarily fill Brown’s speedy role, account for those targets in the passing game.

Enter Jadon Haselwood, the No. 4 overall prospect of the 2019 class according to 247 Sports’ Composite rankings. He’s certainly not the dynamic speedster that Brown was but he presents plenty of matchup problems in his own right. The 6-foot-2 pass-catcher has size, length, a high football IQ and leaping ability that make him difficult to beat even in tight coverage.

Though his skill set is somewhat similar to Lamb, what both players do complements what Hurts does as a quarterback. They can offer some leniency in terms of the quarterback’s lack of accuracy, which will make Haselwood a valuable commodity in an explosive offense, leading to a highly productive first season in Norman.