Maybe it was instinct. Perhaps it was a fit of audacity. But there was something different about Jalen Hurts when he stared down a charging pass rusher deep in Arkansas State's red zone earlier this month.
Instead of trying to spin out of the grasp of the oncoming defender and escape the pocket or tuck the ball and absorb a sack, the junior quarterback unleashed a pass. Moments later, the ball arrived in the outstretched hands of Jerry Jeudy as the Alabama receiver zipped across the face of the end zone to score the Tide's fifth touchdown in a 50-point rout.