That’s it. It’s over. No more rumors, no more speculations. Jalen Hurts will not redshirt. According to the new rules, a player can play in up to 4 games without losing a year of eligibility. Many people thought that Hurts was going to play in 4 games, redshirt, and then transfer. Fortunately, they were wrong. Jalen Hurts, who has played less than half a game in each game, has thrown 5 touchdowns and 1 interception this season. The starting quarterback for Auburn, Jarrett Stidham, has thrown 5 touchdowns this season and 2 interceptions.
Here is the stats recap of the main players at either quarterback, running back, wide receiver, or tight end.
Stats recap: Quarterbacks
Tua Tagovailoa: 8/8 128-yards 2 touchdowns
Jalen Hurts: 4/6 118-yards 1 touchdown
Mac Jones: 1/2 94-yards 1 touchdown
All the quarterbacks combined for an average of a 99.7 QBR (QBR goes up to 100).
Stats recap: Running Back
Damien Harris: 5 carries 20-yards, 1 reception 6-yards
Josh Jacobs: 6 carries 49-yards 2 touchdowns
Najee Harris: 11 carries 73-yards 1 touchdown
Brian Robinson: 12 carries 65-yards, 1 kick return 30-yards
Stats recap: Wide Receiver
Jaylen Waddle: 3 receptions 138-yards 2 touchdowns, 1 punt return 63-yards 1 touchdown
Henry Ruggs III: 5 receptions 116-yards 2 touchdowns
Jerry Jeudy: 2 receptions 58-yards
Stats recap: Tight End
Irvin Smith: 1 reception 13-yards
Not much happened at tight end, but a lot of stuff happen at quarterback. All three quarterbacks got to play. Mac Jones, the third string quarterback, got his first college touchdown ever in that game. Tua Tagovailoa hasn’t played in a 4th quarter yet this season. Also, Jalen Hurts now has 66 total touchdowns over his career, 45 passing touchdowns and 21 rushing touchdowns.
Alabama has one main problem, kicking issues. This goes back to 2013 when Adam Griffith kicked the kick-six. He did end up playing alright during the rest of his career at Alabama, but he never did meet the kind of standards to be a kicker at the best team in the nation. Then came Andy Pappanastos who hadn’t played well during the season and then sent the CFP Championship to overtime by missing the game winning field goal. Of course, he had made it, Tua Tagovailoa wouldn’t have had his game winning 41-yard touchdown in overtime. After Pappanastos came Austin Jones who’s currently the backup kicker. Jones was pulled because he missed 3 extra-points in the first 2 games. Now we have Joseph Bullovas, who missed the only 2 field goals he kicked last game, one from 24-yards and the other from 31-yards. However, he hasn’t missed an extra-point, so that’s a plus.
One great thing about the game is that Alabama never punted. The offense always did something with the ball. Alabama scored 8 touchdowns, missed 2 field goals, and their last drive was cut short because the game ended, no punts were involved.
