Lane Kiffin Weighs In On The Jalen Hurts Situation
BOCA RATON, FL - SEPTEMBER 1: Head coach Lane Kiffin of the Florida Atlantic Owls throws the ball prior to the game against the Navy Midshipmen on September 1, 2017 at FAU Stadium in Boca Raton, Florida. (Photo by Joel Auerbach/Getty Images)
Here's what the former Alabama offensive coordinator thinks about the situation.
Lane Kiffin said earlier this week he believed Tua Tagovailoa would "no doubt" have transferred from Alabama if he didn't play in the national title game.
Now, Kiffin has weighed in on the transfer possibility of the Crimson Tide's other quarterback, Jalen Hurts.
Many believe Hurts, a rising junior, will transfer to another school. Some are suggesting he should stay at Alabama and become a Braxton Miller-type running back/wide receiver.
Kiffin said on Outkick the Coverage With Clay Travis Wednesday that "95 percent" of players in Hurts' situation would transfer. He thinks it's silly, though, to suggest that Hurts changes positions.
Here's why, from For The Win:
“I wanna take a poll. I want to go back 13 months after the SEC championship as a true freshman, and he’s the SEC Offensive Player of the Year – the first freshman since Herschel Walker to do that. Think about that, OK? And I want to take a poll of the hundred-and-whatever-30 coaches out there – head coaches – how many of them would have given anything to have him on their team? Probably every one of them, except maybe Oklahoma.
“So, did the guy break his arm or something? No. The guy’s an elite talent, and I don’t know why this year happened (the way) it happened. I look at the games, and I said this yesterday and it’s going to come across as arrogant. They said, would you have pulled him? Well, I wouldn’t have been in that situation in my head because that’s just how I think. You know how competitive I am. I would have put the guy in different situations, you know, just like we did the year before. Look at his total touchdowns as a freshman versus a sophomore (23 in 2016, 17 in 2017). …
“Coach Saban in an interview the day before the game the other day said how much he’s improved in the passing game, so I’m not sure what happened.”
So, Kiffin seems to believe that it's likely that Hurts transfers, but if he stays at Alabama, it'd likely be to compete for the starting quarterback position.
Stay tuned.
