Draft season is just around the corner and there is no better time than now to start breaking down NFL prospects. This class is packed with players that are going to make an impact at the next level. I will cover each and every one of them from the big dudes in the trenches to the erasers patrolling the secondary. Let’s get started with a prospect from the Southland Conference, Jalyx Hunt of the Houston Christian Huskies.
The Background
Jalyx Hunt is an intriguing prospect that not many people may have heard of but is definitely worth taking a closer look at. Hunt was an unranked recruit who played safety for the University High School Titans in Orange City, Florida. Hunt was a two-way star for the Titans, as he was named the team's Defensive Player of the Year as a junior, and team Offensive MVP as a senior. He Was the AAU national champion at the Junior Olympic Games in the long jump and triathlon and an All-American in the high jump in 2011 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Hunt was ranked the 130th player in the state but received no major offers and decided to further his career, by going to Cornell in the Ivy League.
Hunt’s time at Cornell would be a mixed bag with very little notice from anyone around the college football scene. As a freshman for the Big Red, Hunt would play in just seven games as a backup safety and special teamer, while recording just three tackles. His sophomore season would be wiped out by COVID-19 as the Ivy League canceled the 2020 season. As a junior things would begin to turn around for Hunt, as he played in all ten games for Cornell, while playing 234 defensive snaps and recording 26 tackles, 14 solo tackles, 53.8% solo rate, with one forced fumble, one PBU, and one blocked kick. The stats may not be eye-popping but the transformation of his body is. He came to Cornell as a 6’2”/182 lb safety and left as a 6’3”/236 lb player destined for a position change.
That change would come with his transfer to the Houston Christian Huskies, where he has developed into one of this class's top EDGE prospects. The Huskies would move Hunt to an OLB role where as a junior he would be named second-team all-Southland Conference and lead the SLC in tackles for loss (11.5) and forced fumbles (3), tied for second in the league in sacks (7) and was ninth in the conference in tackles (87). His 87 tackles ranked third on the team while he led all HCU players in both sacks and tackles for loss. In eleven games played and 718 defensive snaps, Hunt recorded 87 tackles, 39 solo tackles, 44.8% solo rate, 11½ TFLs, seven sacks, three forced fumbles, one recovery, and two PBUs.
As a senior, Hunt would play on the defensive line more for the Huskies. While his tackle numbers dipped a bit, the rest of his game took off. In ten games played, Hunt played 532 defensive snaps and recorded 46 total tackles, 19 solo stops, 41.3% solo rate, nine TFLs, 6½ sacks, two forced fumbles, two recoveries, one interception, three PBUs, and one blocked kick. Not bad for a player who played different positions in three straight years. He finished his two-year run with the Huskies with totals of 21 games, 133 total tackles, 58 solo tackles, 43.6% solo rate 20½ TFLS, 13½ sacks, five forced fumbles, three recoveries, one interception, five PBUs, and one blocked kick.
Player Breakdown
Hunt is a huge potential guy! He has the size 6’4”/248 lbs with a wide variety of football knowledge, having started out as a safety, moving to outside linebacker, then EDGE. His game has evolved as his body has grown and taken shape. Even in his early years, you could see that a position change was inevitable with his height and length. As a pass rusher is a raw developmental player with an untapped potential. When watching Hunt’s film you can see he plays with a natural feel for the position. He’s far from a finished product, as he will need to expand his pass-rush repertoire and improve at the point of attack versus the run. He also has a big learning curve ahead as he makes the jump from FCS to the NFL.
Get him in the weight room and paired up with good NFL coaching and the sky's the limit for Hunt, but it’s not going to happen overnight. Remember he’s only had basically two years of pass rush experience. He could also benefit from having a more strategic plan of attack, which would allow him to set up counters more effectively and not just play off his feel and ability to read plays, which are extremely good skills. He has more work to do improving in the run game than as a pass rusher in my opinion. One big question is how will he stand up to the size and talent of NFL offensive linemen? He plays with a fearless and physical style of play that makes him hard to routinely handle.
Hunt is a playmaker that screams downhill and displays the flashes of being a true disruptor. Coaches are going to love his motor and hustle! He has an 82⅞” wingspan and 10⅛” hands that he uses to swallow up plays in his path. Hunt’s speed could stand to improve over the 4.62 sec forty time that I have seen posted, but it’s not horrible as his burst off the snap, quickness, and acceleration more than makeup for it. His coverage skills need work and he’s best in zone coverage at this time. He does seem to have decent ball-tracking skills, but not sure I’d trust him in man-coverage situations, at least not at this point. But let’s face it, even with a background at safety, that’s not what we really need him to do.
NFL & Fantasy Projection
Hunt might be one of the more intriguing players overall in this draft class with his physical traits, high upside potential, and skillset. If you’re a flower of my IDP Devy work and NFL draft Rookie Grade spreadsheet, then you can see the potential he has with his Big Play Score (BPS) of 2.38, which puts him among the elite. Granted that came against FCS competition but that score shows he dominated at that level, which he should. Hunt has plus marks as a pass rusher and Impact Score (8.714) is tops among EDGE defenders in this class that I have graded so far. From his time at Cornell as a safety to his current state of an EDGE at Houston Christian, you can see his development both physically and talent, all while changing positions.
NFL teams are going to love this young man’s game and you should too. With that said don’t run out and draft him high. There’s just no need for that! If someone else does, then so be it. If you have a need at the position and have some late-round dart throws, then, by all means, take a shot here. I really like Hunt and his upside. He has shown a natural progression and improvement throughout his career but still needs some much-needed development. You will have to be patient with him on your roster, but if you can do that, then the potential and return you can be rewarded with is huge!
Thanks for reading my article. I am a member of the FSWA (Fantasy Sports Writers of America). Follow me on Twitter at @HollywoodTitan, on Facebook on my IDPNation page, on Reddit in the fantasy football IDP sub — I’m user KingTitan1 — and tune in each week and listen to IDP Nation and Devy IDP Grind, the podcasts that I co-host, on several different platforms. Feel free to email or DM me with any questions that you have, as I’m always glad to help fellow IDPers. #IDPNation #IDP #IDPDevy
