After all that Nick Saban helped him with, Jalen Hurts is never one to bad mouth the University of Alabama football program. As much as Crimson Tide fans hate not seeing him with the team, one would be hard-pressed to bad mouth him.
He was not the perfect player, but Hurts gave Alabama everything he had during his three years.
A native of Channelview, Texas, he was instrumental on two Southeastern Conference teams (2016, 2018) and was as happy as Saban was for the institution to pull out a comeback win over Georgia in the 2017 College Football Playoff National Championship season.
He was a record-setting quarterback and an even better person. When he made the decision to transfer to Oklahoma – upon earning his degree – Tide fans wished him well and still supported him.
His second chance as a signal caller at a Power Five school has been all he could every ask for and more.
Hurts anchored one of college football’s best offenses, as the Sooners averaged 43.2 points per game. He accounted for 3,000-plus (3,634) passing yards and 1,000-plus (1,255) rushing yards with 51 total touchdowns to seven interceptions.
The 6-foot-2, 219-pounder endured some tough games; however, he found ways to deliver Oklahoma to big victories.
RELATED: Jalen Hurts makes history becoming first QB to start for multiple CFP teams
Because of Hurts, the Sooners are back in the CFP as the No. 4 seed.
He led the program to a Big 12 Championship and earned Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Year and first-team All-Big 12. With the incredible narrative he had coming from Alabama and the year he had under Lincoln Riley, Hurts was runner-up for the Heisman Memorial Trophy.
He has a huge matchup on Sunday in the CFP semifinal at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl versus Joe Burrow and the LSU Tigers. The last time Hurts was inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta, Ga.) he had scored the game-clinching touchdown for the Tide against Georgia in last season’s SEC Championship Game. He came off the bench to replace an injured Tua Tagovailoa and rescued the team to a 35-28 win over Kirby Smart and the Bulldogs.
During a Q&A segment with reporters, one of the questions directed to Hurts was on how he left things with the fans at Alabama.
Judging by how much they have supported him all year on social media platforms, one can never remove him from the Alabama faithful.
“Well, I appreciate the support that they’ve shown this entire year,” Hurts said. “I appreciate it genuinely. I think that says it all, the fact that they’re still supporting me, that they’re there for me, that they’re wishing me luck and hoping the best for the Oklahoma Sooners. I mean, that’s a great thing.”
Not too many players have the charisma in having two major schools be “all in” on him.
Hurts has it with Alabama and Oklahoma and he would not want it any other way.
People have tried to create drama between he and Saban, in terms of statements like “Hurts is in the CFP and Saban is not,” but the graduate transfer is not entertaining it. He is truly thankful for the opportunities he received in Tuscaloosa (Ala.) and the ones he endeared himself too.
If the Tide cannot win a national title, then seeing Hurts hoist the CFP Trophy would be the next best thing.
All of the Alabama nation will be rooting for Oklahoma this weekend.
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Stephen M. Smith is the managing editor and senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith.
