Jalin Hyatt on game vs. Alabama: 'It probably changed my life'

Former Tennessee wide receiver Jalin Hyatt was selected in the third round with the No. 73 overall pick in this year’s NFL Draft after a breakout season in Knoxville. His season was highlighted by a legendary performance versus one of the best teams in the nation year in and year out, Alabama, where he’d torch the Crimson Tide for a career-high 207 receiving yards and a school-record five touchdowns on just six catches.

Hyatt earned SEC Player of the Week honors for his performance and would continue to build on it throughout the season. But even he could admit that his special performance on the third Saturday of October had an impact on the trajectory of his career.

“It probably changed my life,” Hyatt said. “But you know at the same time, though, that’s what football can do to you. That’s what it can bring and that’s why I take this sport so serious. This is my life and I love the sport and I love the game. I feel like loving the game or mistakes I make or whatever, if I’m doing good or doing bad, just learning from it and getting better the next day. I think that’s the biggest thing that I learned and just want to build on when I get (to the Giants).”

Hyatt became the first player to score three-plus touchdowns and have 100 yards receiving versus a Nick Saban Crimson Tide team regularly known for their prowess in the defensive backfield.

His performance was jaw-dropping, but not so much for Hyatt, who took his dedication and training to new heights leading into the 2022 season. Following the Volunteers’ bowl game in 2021 Hyatt flipped a switch, traveling back to Knoxville to hit the ground running and workout versus heading home for winter break. From building extra chemistry with quarterback Hendon Hooker, to catching over 1,000 balls on certain days from the JUGS machine, Hyatt got a head start on his stand out season, which he spoke about during his first press conference with New York.

“I got serious with it,” Hyatt. “I started realizing that this right here is for me.”

His offseason work culminated in what many would call his ‘bag’ year, as he’d end the 2022 season with 67 catches for 1,267 yards and 15 touchdowns, taking home Biletnikoff Award, given annually to the nation’s top wide receiver, and earning unanimous first-team All-American honors.

There’s no question that Hyatt’s draft stock skyrocketed in the 2022 season, and his biggest upward spike oddly enough came in the presence of the general manger that would end up drafting him.

“I was at that Alabama game,” New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen said. “I can’t remember why I came in late, but I was a little bit late. But I was on the field for the first half. I was coming from another game, landed there, and first half I was on the field, and you could really feel his speed. It’s legit 4.3 [seconds in the 40-yard dash].”

The rest is history, as Schoen would trade New York’s third- and fourth-round picks to select Hyatt. Draft day was a special one for Hyatt and the Giants, and a moment that was bred from hard work in the offseason and a groundbreaking performance in Neyland Stadium worthy of storming the field.