NCAA Football: 10 college football players who’d be next cover athletes

SANTA CLARA, CA - JANUARY 07: Trevor Lawrence #16 of the Clemson Tigers reacts after his teams 44-16 win over the Alabama Crimson Tide in the CFP National Championship presented by AT&T at Levi's Stadium on January 7, 2019 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
SANTA CLARA, CA - JANUARY 07: Trevor Lawrence #16 of the Clemson Tigers reacts after his teams 44-16 win over the Alabama Crimson Tide in the CFP National Championship presented by AT&T at Levi's Stadium on January 7, 2019 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
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(Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
(Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

5. Jalen Hurts, QB, Oklahoma

Jalen Hurts is one of the most intriguing quarterback prospects in college football. After carrying his team to the National Championship in both his freshman and sophomore year, he was benched against Georgia when Tua Tagovailoa took the field.

Tua is obviously a top quarterback in the country, but that doesn’t mean that Jalen Hurts isn’t, too. In the games that Hurts played in, he showed improvement in his passing abilities. He even saved the team after Tua got injured in the SEC Championship game.

Now that Jalen is playing for Lincoln Riley and Oklahoma, he will grow as an even better passer. Riley has produced two Heisman Trophy winners and two first overall selection in the NFL Draft in his first two years as head coach. Jalen has more talent and ability than Baker Mayfield or Kyler Murray had before Lincoln Riley, so it will be extremely interesting to see if he can do similar things with Jalen that he did with them.

If Jalen can live up to the Oklahoma quarterback hype of the past couple of years, I expect for him to be in consideration for all sorts of awards. He will also be fun to use in Riley’s offense, and he has the dual threat ability that gamers love in a quarterback. He’s no Lamar Jackson, but he would be a blast to use in NCAA Football.