Where did Jalen Hurts play high school and college football?

Jalen Hurts has been a massive boom for the Philadelphia Eagles but some fans might be wondering where the QB played high school and college football. 

When the Philadelphia Eagles used the 53rd overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft on quarterback Jalen Hurts, there weren’t many people sold. And even when he eventually took over the starting job, the doubters lingered. Now, Hurts has the Eagles playing in Super Bowl 57 and anyone still not believing in the QB is awfully silent.

Hurts has been one of the best stories in the NFL over the past few years. He had a unique college football career and was never projected to be a franchise quarterback. Since Nick Sirianni took over as head coach in Philadelphia, though, that’s changed and now he’s going into the Super Bowl with a big extension in the offseason likely looming.

Those who haven’t been locked in with Jalen Hurts, the Eagles, college football, or so on, might not be familiar with where he came from. So let’s take a look at the quarterback’s football career prior to getting to the NFL and now Super Bowl 57.

Where did Jalen Hurts play high school football?

A native of Houston, TX, Jalen Hurts stayed in the state growing up and played his high school football at Channelview High School in the town of the same name. His father, Averion, was his high school coach.

Hurts was a 4-star recruit throughout the process, totaling over 3,700 total yards and 51 touchdowns as a senior year. He was also the top-ranked dual-threat quarterback in his recruiting class with Texas A&M and Alabama being the two leading contenders to sign him out of high school.

Where did Jalen Hurts play college football?

Ultimately, Hurts decided to attend Alabama and play for Nick Saban’s Crimson Tide. He earned the job as the starter in his freshman 2016 season after just one game, becoming the first Alabama freshman to start at quarterback since 1984 (Vince Sutton).

Hurts went on to win SEC Freshman and Offensive Player of the Year that season, helping lead the Crimson Tide to the College Football Playoff National Championship Game, a loss to Clemson. The following year, though, Hurts led Alabama to the title game again, but trailing 13-0 against Georgia at halftime, he was benched for Tua Tagovailoa, who led the comeback to win a national title.

The following season, Hurts was the backup, playing a key role as he came in to help beat Georgia in the SEC Championship Game after Tagovailoa was injured. After the season, though, he elected to transfer to somewhere he could start and develop further: Lincoln Riley’s Oklahoma.

He played his final college season for the Oklahoma Sooners and went on to be a Heisman Trophy finalist after the most productive season of his college career with over 5,000 total yards and 52 total touchdowns. He made his fourth College Football Playoff appearance with the Sooners, but lost in the semifinals to the juggernaut 2019 LSU team led by Joe Burrow.