There was a time Jalen Hurts was benched at halftime of a championship game. He was replaced and ultimately forced to Oklahoma, and now, he's the first former Sooner quarterback to ever win a Super Bowl championship.
Hurts led the Philadelphia Eagles to a 40-22 blowout of two-time defending champions Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX on Sunday in New Orleans.
Troy Aikman won three Super Bowls with the Dallas Cowboys but finished his career at UCLA before becoming a top NFL Draft pick and NFL Hall of Famer. Blake Bell also won three titles with the Chiefs, and although he played quarterback at OU, he finished his career as a tight end and that's what position he played for the Chiefs.
Hurts was simply spectacular Sunday with fellow OU alumni Lane Johnson blocking for him on the offensive line. Hurts out-dueled Patrick Mahomes and completed 17 of 22 passes for 221 yards and two touchdowns with one interception. He also rushed for a team-high 72 yards on 11 carries with another score.
The performance was great enough to earn Hurts Super Bowl MVP honors after the game.
IT HURTS TO BE THE ONE 🔥 pic.twitter.com/QwvQ9WYQej
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) February 10, 2025
The Eagles were up 34-0 before the Chiefs were even able to respond in the third quarter. Hurts was the first to find the end zone with Philadelphia's famous "Brotherly Shove" to cap the Eagles' second possession. That had the Eagles up 7-0 after the first quarter.
If it ain't broke, don't fix it 🙂↕️@jalenhurts | #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/xaCKAfZXjc
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) February 10, 2025
The Eagles added a field goal and pick-6 in the second quarter before Hurts completed a 12-yard TD pass to A.J. Brown before halftime to take a 24-0 lead into the locker room.
ALWAYS OPEN 🤝 INNER EXCELLENCE@1kalwaysopen_ | #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/soxQTL93Fh
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) February 10, 2025
Hurts then launched a 46-yard TD pass to former Alabama teammate DeVonta Smith in the third quarter, putting the Eagles up 34-0 before the Chiefs finally put points on the board.
Hurts scored four times two years ago when the Eagles lost to the Chiefs in the Super Bowl, but since Hurts is a Sooner, Smith became the first former Alabama player to ever score a touchdown in a Super Bowl.
a HOME COOKED 6-for-6 special 🧑🍳@DeVontaSmith_6 | #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/Bp5EVx3Q8l
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) February 10, 2025
It was just over eight years ago when Nick Saban replaced Hurts with a freshman Tua Tagovailoa with Alabama down 13-0 at halftime of the national championship game. Tagovailoa led a comeback and Hurts ultimately never got his job back.
After a season as a backup, Hurts transferred to OU in 2019 for his final college season. It was the best season of his career as he posted career-highs in every statistic and finished as the Heisman Trophy runner-up.
Hurts transformed into a promising NFL prospect and the Eagles drafted him in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft. Hurts was the Eagles' starting quarterback by the end of his rookie season and had them in the Super Bowl by Year 3.
It's likely there would be no Super Bowl for Hurts without the Sooners, but there's also no Super Bowl winning quarterback for the Sooners without Hurts. It was a match made in Norman.