Oklahoma football: Film study shows Jalen Hurts can succeed at OU

2016 – 52-yard pass to ArDarius Stewart vs. LSU

It was probably Hurts’ worst game as a freshman, but he made one of the best throws of the entire college football season in the middle of it. On a first-and-10 with the score still knotted at 0-0 in the third quarter Hurts dropped straight back, looked off a safety then dropped an absolute dime to ArDarius Stewart that hit the streaking receiver in stride. The Crimson Tide didn’t score on the possession after failing to convert on fourth-and-goal, but the play certainly helped change the tone of the game, loosening up the stingy Tigers defense and eventually allowing the Crimson Tide to pull ahead for the 10-0 victory. To make a throw like that when things aren’t going your way on the road in Death Valley as a freshman shows the kind of steal nerves that the Sooners have come to expect from their starting quarterbacks in recent seasons.

2016 – 10-yard touchdown pass to ArDarius Stewart vs. Mississippi State

The Crimson Tide were already up 30-3 with 6:19 to go in the game and looking for a knockout blow with a first-and-10 from the just outside the 10 yard line. With the defense playing a tight zone coverage Hurts dropped back and fired a laser over the middle into to Stewart for a touchdown. Though this play looks less spectacular on film than the previous two long touchdown passes, it’s perhaps the best example so far of why Hurts can work in a Riley offense. The Sooners have been efficient in the past few seasons because of Kyler Murray and Baker Mayfield’s ability to make throws into tiny windows. Here Hurts finds the seam between three different zones, two playing shallow and a safety over the top, and puts the ball where only his man can get to it. Earlier in the year Hurts may have checked down or taken off in that situation rather than trust his accuracy and receiver. It came a week after his struggles at LSU and showed his continued maturation as a quarterback.