Jalen Hurts on Alabama QB Jalen Milroe: 'He's a very special player'

Jalen Hurts turned back the clock a little bit by praising Jalen Milroe after watching the Alabama quarterback from a distance.

Milroe, after winning the SEC Championship Saturday, echoed Hurts’ quote: “keep the main thing, the main thing.” Amid that, Hurts was asked Wednesday what he thought of the Alabama quarterback.

After a shaky start to the season, Milroe balled out as a dual-threat to get the Crimson Tide a playoff date with Michigan in the Rose Bowl.

“He’s had a great year,” Hurts said. “He’s always been a very special player. He’s a Texas kid. And he’s just he’s just, he’s just continued to grow and grow and grow and it’s been really, really nice to watch. 

“So I’ve been supporting him from a distance, and I’m happy to see him getting into the Final Four. I’m happy to see him have the opportunity to lead his team and hopefully get a national title, so all my support goes to him.”

The criticism was loud earlier in the year. But Milroe’s mentality was simple.

“Keep the main thing the main thing,” Milroe told CBS’ Jenny Dell after the SEC Championship. “Before anybody had an opinion of me, I had my purpose already. The biggest thing was I just stayed true to myself and I had the right support system around me to uplift me.”

Hurts and Milroe, are they one in the same? Well, not exactly. Hurts was on the biggest stage two years in a row with Alabama, a loss to Clemson and a win over Georgia, albeit the latter one ended with Tua Tagovailoa leading the comeback victory.

But Hurts, one of the highest paid players in the NFL and in the middle of a 2023 season trying to get the Philadelphia Eagles back to the Super Bowl, gave his props to another budding superstar.

The Eagles quarterback might know a thing or two. Milroe is feeling it right now too. After a miracle throw to beat Auburn, he was solid against Georgia to win the SEC and clinch the No. 4 seed.

Now, he’ll have to put that talent on display in the Rose Bowl against Michigan to get to the national championship against Washington or Texas.

This season, Milroe has 2,718 yards, 23 touchdowns, six interceptions and a 65.5% completion percentage to go along with 468 rushing yards and 12 rushing touchdowns.