Jalen Hurts Excited Eagles Took DeVonta Smith In 2021 NFL Draft: 'Run It Back Then My Boy!'
PHILADELPHIA (CBS)- The Eagles traded up two spots in Thursday night's NFL Draft to select wide receiver DeVonta Smith out of the University of Alabama with the No. 10 pick. The move reunites Smith with his former college quarterback, Jalen Hurts, who expressed his excitement that Smith is coming to the city of brotherly love.
"Run it back thennnn my boy! You deserve it all brotha, congrats! Let's get to it!" Hurts said in a tweet following the pick on Thursday night.
Run It Back Thennnn My Boy! You Deserve It All Brotha , Congrats !! Let's Get To It ‼️@DeVontaSmith_6
— Jalen Hurts (@JalenHurts) April 30, 2021
Smith, in his press conference after being selected, said that Hurts had already called him and was "screaming" and "happy" that he's joining the organization.
Smith and Hurts spent two years as teammates in Tuscaloosa, in 2017 and 2018, and the wide receiver says that the relationship goes back even further to when he was a high school recruit.
"Jalen, that's my guy," Smith said. "Even when I was a recruit, he was the guy trying to get me to come to Alabama. The connection is there. The chemistry is there. It's just, overall, he's always helped everybody else be better on the field."
In Smith's freshman season in 2017, he and Hurts connected for seven catches for 119 yards and two touchdowns. In his sophomore year, Hurts largely served as the Tide's backup behind Tua Tagovailoa. Then Hurts transferred to Oklahoma following that season.
Still, there's plenty of familiarity between the two from the two years they spent on the Tuscaloosa campus together. Hurts apparently played a part in the Eagles deciding to make the move to go up and get Smith.
Jalen Hurts sold the #Eagles on DeVonta Smith when Howie Roseman asked about him.
— Jeff Kerr (@JeffKerrCBS) April 30, 2021
It was everything the front office and scout team knew they were getting.
Smith: "We are trying to change the program around." >>https://t.co/fuaWN5M7wS
When asked to describe Smith leading up to the NFL Draft, Hurts called him a "smooth criminal" for the way he's able to create separation from defensive backs trying to cover him. It seems safe to say the former teammates are pretty happy to be reunited once again. Eagles fans were certainly excited with the move reacting, much like Hurts, with excitement on Twitter.