When it came down to decision time for Alabama graduate transfer Jalen Hurts, there really was no decision to be made, argues 247Sports director of scouting Barton Simmons. Simmons was quick to argue for the Oklahoma Sooners when Hurts entered the transfer portal.
Nothing about that changed when Hurts made his announcement Wednesday afternoon on social media.
“Why would you go anywhere other than Oklahoma? Why would you decide to go to Miami and try to be the savior? Why would you go to Maryland and try to be the savior? Why would you sniff around at Auburn and crush whatever equity you built from the Alabama fan base? Go to Oklahoma, where you’ve got an opportunity to compete for National Championships,” Simmons said on the Cover 3 College Football Podcast. “You’ve got an opportunity to play in the biggest games out there.”
Hurts instantly saw his name tied to the 2019 Heisman Trophy. In fact, his odds jumped to 9/1 (third place overall) before the announcement even became public. Whether or not Hurts competes for college football’s greatest individual prize remains to be seen. Fans may want to wait for his first snap of spring practice before setting those expectations, at least. The opportunities under Lincoln Riley are limitless.
“You’ve got an opportunity to play for a coach that is as good as any in college football from an offensive standpoint,” Simmons said. “You’ve got a chance to develop into an NFL Draft pick. There’s nothing that this move misses. It’s great for us as fans. It’s just great for college football overall. It’s going to be really good. We don’t have to blindly trust that he’ll develop a freshman summer enrollee or blindly trust Tanner Mordecai to pick up the reins. We know what Jalen Hurts is. For people that doubt Jalen Hurts can be good at Oklahoma, I would argue otherwise. I disagree with you. I think Jalen Hurts is going to be really good at Oklahoma.”
After going 26-2 as the Alabama starter over his first two seasons, Hurts spent the 2018 season as the backup behind Tagovailoa. Hurts had been replaced by Tagovailoa, the 2018 Heisman Trophy runner-up, in the 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship game against Georgia, sparking a comeback victory after halftime.
However, Hurts came off the bench for an injured Tagovailoa in the 2018 SEC Championship Game, again against the Bulldogs, and led Alabama to a comeback win.
For Hurts, the 35-28 win over Georgia at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta completed a redemption story, which went through many chapters. At one time, many assumed Hurts would transfer following Tagovailoa's emergence. However, the quarterback explained on the SEC Network after the game that the idea of transferring was never an option.