JALEN HURTS IS making his Super Bowl debut, but we’ve been watching him post big-time weight room numbers for years.
The 2020 second round draft pick out of Oklahoma led the Philadelphia Eagles to a standout season and into the Big Game for the first time since 2018. They’ll take on the Kansas City Chiefs (and former MH cover guy Patrick Mahomes) at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona on February 12th (check out how to watch here).
Hurts has proved to be a dynamic quarterback, balancing an effective rushing attack with an impressive aerial game. He is a powerful runner, sitting at 760 total rushing yards going into the Super Bowl. He recently broke the record for most rushing touchdowns in a season by a quarterback, scoring his 15th in the NFC Championship win over the San Fransisco 49ers.
All that success on the gridiron is due in part to his remarkable strength, which he’s demonstrated time and again off the field. Hurts comes from a powerlifting background; his early exploits were widely reported to have started early in high school. The future superstar QB was competing in Texas powerlifting meets when he was as young as 15 years old.
He started his college career at Alabama, one of the most dominant forces in college football. Alabama posted a collection of his lifts with an impressive caption for any underclassman: “he might only be a freshman, but Jalen Hurts is one of the strongest people on the entire team.”
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At only 200 pounds, Hurts squatted 2.5 times his body weight. He also hit a max bench press of 275 lbs. Wildly impressive for a freshman—especially for a smaller skill player like a quarterback.
Hurts served as starter for Alabama his freshman and sophomore year, leading the team to back-to-back CFP championship games. The Crimson Tide fell to Clemson in 2016, but Hurts lead them to victory in 2017, collecting their 17th CFP championship.
He made headway on his strength too, seemingly breaking the 600-pound milestone on his squats.
Hurts later transferred to Oklahoma, where he played out his final season. Hurts lead the team to an impressive 12-2 record, winning the Big 12 Championship before losing in the playoff semifinals to LSU. Hurts was named runner-up for the Heisman Trophy behind LSU’s rising star (and now Cincinnati Bengal QB) Joe Burrow.
While Hurts wracked up pass and rush stats, he kept lifting. Another video surfaced of Hurts demolishing a 585-pound squat during his time at Oklahoma—roughly double the size of nearly any defensive lineman he may have to push through on the field.
Now, Hurts is making history by leading the Eagles to their fourth Super Bowl appearance in franchise history. His strength is clearly still a focus as a professional, as he’s been captured finishing big time weight with ease. During the offseason last year, Hurts was recorded trap bar deadlifting 620 pounds.
Good luck to the players that have to stop him in the open field.
Cori Ritchey, NASM-CPT is an Associate Health & Fitness Editor at Men’s Health and a certified personal trainer and group fitness instructor. You can find more of her work in HealthCentral, Livestrong, Self, and others.
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