Jalen Hurts to Nebraska? Odds the Bama QB Transfers and his Best Fits

• Alabama quarterback Jalen Hurts might transfer
• Where would he go? What are the rules?
• Scary thought: Stanford quarterback Jalen Hurts

Rumors have been swirling that Alabama quarterback Jalen Hurts will transfer since the fourth quarter of the national championship game. With Tua Tagovailoa the hero, and Jalen Hurts pretty clearly an NFL-hopeful, it just made sense that the bruising QB would look elsewhere for his Junior year. Where would he go, though, and how? Is he really likely to leave?

Why would Jalen Hurts transfer?

• Starting position isn’t guaranteed, as it could be elsewhere

Since enrolling early and being named the starter as a true freshman, Jalen Hurts is 26-2 as QB1 and has led the Crimson Tide to consecutive national title games. It’s hard to believe that anyone with that resume would consider transferring, usually at that point you’re posing for statues, but Hurts’ journey is anything but typical.

Firstly, Clemson’s national title can be attributed, at least somewhat, to a few imperfect plays Jalen Hurts made as a true freshman. Secondly, Alabama’s offense did really struggle last season, especially down the stretch. Losing the Iron Bowl to Auburn almost cost Alabama a shot at the playoff, and if it weren’t for DOGGONE SEC BIAS/Ohio State getting blown out by Iowa we wouldn’t be having this conversation.

It’s hard to say exactly what the offense’s problem was, but Tua Tagovailoa seemed to fix all of it. Tua’s performance in the second half, and particularly in the final play, was the type that gets statues built and etches your difficult-to-spell name in Alabama history books forever.

Here’s that last play, by the way:

Why wouldn’t Jalen Hurts transfer?

• Transferring is difficult
• You might love Tua Tagovailoa, but you’re not in charge of the depth chart

Tua has two quarters of meaningful game experience, and as exciting as the championship game roller coaster was Nick Saban isn’t the emotional type. If there’s one coach in the country that can start Jalen Hurts after what happened, it’s Nick Saban.

Hurts will be given a fair chance to prove himself, and if he can convince the coaching staff that he gives Alabama the best chance to win, he’ll be the starter.

Jalen Hurts makes sense as a starter for a lot of the same reasons it make sense to pull him when down 13-0 in a title game. He’s very conservative, he doesn’t give the ball away, and over time he produces exactly the sort of grinding, inevitable victories that are Alabama’s bread and butter. He is not, by any stretch of the imagination, a livewire. That is both a good thing and a bad thing.

Lastly, Tua’s biggest advocate on the Alabama staff is gone. Brian Daboll loved Tua, and wanted to start him a lot earlier than January, and is now the offensive coordinator for the Buffalo Bills. Nobody knows how Mike Locksley feels about the two quarterbacks, and with Tua injured (broken finger) in spring practice, it’s difficult to compare the two in spring practice.

Is Jalen Hurts allowed to transfer?

• Yes, sort of
• It certainly won’t be easy, and he’ll need Nick Saban’s blessing

Yes and no. Jalen Hurts is not allowed to transfer to any FBS school and start playing in the 2018 season, a transfer anywhere will require a waiting period of one year or two semesters. The only exceptions to this are for students who have completed their bachelors’ degree, which Hurts has not done, and for students transferring to a school with an academic program not offered at the original school.

The NCAA’s permission-to-contact rule states that schools may not contact a student-athlete enrolled in a four-year college unless they have written permission-to-contact from the student’s current athletic director.

There’s a big hubbub about Nick Saban having the authority to block or authorize Hurts’ transfer. That rule is a little complicated, and it’s not technically Nick Saban’s authority. It’s the NCAA’s permission-to-contact rule, which states that schools may not contact a student-athlete enrolled in a four-year college unless they have written permission-to-contact from the student’s current athletic director.

Schools aren’t currently allowed to contact Jalen Hurts, and if Hurts contacts a school they may not encourage him to transfer. If Hurts transfers to a school without permission-to-contact, he will not be eligible for a scholarship until he has attended the new school for one year.

Who decides whether a school gets permission-to-contact? Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne, likely in consultation with Nick Saban. It’s unlikely that they’ll give permission-to-contact to another SEC school, and if they don’t want to they don’t have to give it to anyone.

Where would Jalen Hurts transfer to?

There are approximately 100 FBS schools that would love to guarantee Hurts the starting spot. He might not be everything that Alabama fans want, but he’s still extraordinarily good.

We can play a little elimination game to find likely destinations for Hurts. Since the point of a transfer would be to maximize NFL visibility, transferring out of the Power 5 or to a school with a deep quarterback room doesn’t make a lot of sense. Furthermore, it’s not likely that he’d transfer anywhere in the SEC, as Alabama won’t give permission-to-contact to an SEC team.

That leaves four conferences. Jalen Hurts would fit in great in the Big 10, and Nebraska has a new exciting head coach and an uncertain quarterback situation.

In the ACC, Florida State might need a new quarterback in 2019 if Deondre Francois runs out of eligibility or goes to the NFL.

In the Big 12, Texas is currently making their way with Sam Ehlinger, who is very good but not quite on Hurts’ level.

There are very few PAC-12 schools that wouldn’t have room for Jalen Hurts, except maybe Washington. Hurts would be a nightmare at Stanford.