Who is Jalen Hurts? 7 quick things to know about Alabama’s star freshman QB

No. 1 Alabama is traveling to Death Valley this Saturday night to take on No. 13 LSU. Alabama quarterback Jalen Hurts is a name you might not be all that familiar with yet, given that this is his first season as a starter for the Tide.

Here are a few quick things to know about the Tide’s signal caller.

1. He’s a true freshman. Having a true freshman quarterback as the starter is quite the rarity for Alabama. Hurts is the first true freshman quarterback to have won the starting job for the Tide since Vince Sutton in 1984. Hurts is the first-ever true freshman to start under a Nick Saban coached team, too. He committed to the Tide over Mississippi State and Texas A&M.

2. He’s the latest phase of Saban’s Alabama evolution. There is a lot Alabama can do with Hurts’ skill set that makes Lane Kiffin’s spread offense more dangerous than ever before. Hurts has rushed for 521 yards and nine touchdowns so far this season. He has thrown for another 12 scores. Here’s more about how Hurts has helped modernize Bama’s offense:

Here’s a taste of everything that Alabama can now do with Saban’s favorite play, inside zone.

They can still run zone slice, with quick pass routes or screens on the perimeter to constrain defenses from bringing DBs into the box:

If Hurts sees the receivers are well-covered, he can hand off. Otherwise, he can throw the quick out.

They can also run zone bluff, in which the H-back heads towards the unblocked DE but arcs around to be a lead blocker on the perimeter for the QB. Watch No. 87, Miller Forristall, run past a big lineman in order to focus on a more agile threat:

Defenses have to worry about the H-back either kicking out the DE or looping around him, and the hesitation that can cause is lethal.

That said, where the Tide have really been able to do special things with Hurts is by inverting that play.

They have the RB take the outside path behind the H-back and send Hurts on the normal inside zone path.

Now if the DE plays to take away the inside run by the QB, Damien Harris has a lead blocker:

3. He’s a super versatile athlete. Not only can he run (Bama timed him at 4.65 in the 40 this spring) and throw, he’s squatted 585 pounds, bench-pressed 275, dead-lifted 585, and competed in the shot put.

4. He played Deshaun Watson on Alabama’s scout team last season. Having been on campus for a week as an early-enrollee in January, Hurts simulated the Clemson quarterback for Bama’s defense ahead of the national championship.

5. He hasn’t had to air it out often. Most of that is due to the style of offense the Tide runs. Hurts ranks 68th in the country in passing yards, with 1,578 on the season. That’s what happens when you’re a dual-threat QB for a run-first team that’s usually winning. He’s been efficient, though, ranking No. 4 nationally among freshmen and No. 4 in the SEC in passer rating.

6. He’s super confident. You can listen to his coach and teammates ...

“I think he has a lot of inner confidence,” Saban said. “He believes that he can do it. It’s important to him. He wants to do it. We have to trust that that’s going to help him develop and do the kind of things that he needs to do. We’re going to support him to do everything in this game that he needs to do and if Blake (Barnett) has to play, we’re going to support him as well.”

Senior defensive end Jonathan Allen is one of the alpha dogs on Alabama’s defense. Allen has noticed a level of confidence in Hurts that is not often seen in a freshman.

“I definitely hear him speaking to the O-Line, talking to the offense in general,” Allen said. “He’s definitely a great leader as a freshman, which is very impressive.”

... or you can just look at this GIF of him staring down the camera after scoring a TD against Tennessee.

7. Still, if Bama gets into trouble against LSU, he’ll have something to prove. “There’s a lot left to be desired offensively in my opinion for Alabama,” ESPN analyst Marcus Spears said in a recent interview with SB Nation. “I don’t think they’re a prolific passing team. I think if you stop Jalen Hurts from running the run-pass option, they might run into some problems against this defense.”