LOOK: Georgia previously offered Gonzaga hero Jalen Suggs in football
Jalen Suggs is an icon from now to eternity after hitting an all-time great shot to lead Gonzaga to a 93-90 win over UCLA to advance to overtime.
JALEN SUGGS. UNBELIEVABLE! 🤯🚨@ZagMBB #FinalFour pic.twitter.com/QeEAjENYmG
— NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness) April 4, 2021
Prior to his heroics though, Suggs was a talented football player as well for Minnehaha Academy out of Minneapolis. The 6-foot-5 Suggs was rated as a 3-star dual-threat quarterback in the 2020 recruiting cycle.
And he had actually earned an offer from Georgia, as Suggs tweeted out the news way back on Dec. 24, 2018.
Beyond blessed to have received a scholarship from the University of Georgia for football🙏🏽 pic.twitter.com/fCXVZgSout
— Jalen Suggs (@JalenSuggs2020) December 24, 2018
Suggs also had football offers from Ohio State, Michigan State and Iowa. But when you’re getting recruited by college basketball bluebloods, your future is pretty clearly in basketball.
Suggs though was always destined for basketball greatness. Renowned quarterback trainer Quincy Avery shared on Saturday he had told Suggs to stick with basketball. Suggs was the No. 11 overall player in the 2020 basketball class, and after his freshman season, even that seems low.
Random: Jalen Suggs was trying to workout to play Quarterback like two years ago…I had to tell him we weren't gonna waste each other time like that
— quincy_avery (@Quincy_Avery) April 4, 2021
Georgia ultimately ended up landing 4-star quarterback Carson Beck in the 2020 recruiting cycle. At the time of Suggs’ offer, Beck was actually committed to Alabama and had not yet even gotten an offer from Georgia. That wouldn’t come until Feb. 27 of 2019, with Beck committing on March 3.
Beck did not throw a pass during his freshman season, but he has made some impressive strides this spring and looks like a real candidate to be the No. 2 quarterback behind JT Daniels.
Related: Georgia QB Carson Beck shines, Kirby Smart breaks down Brock Vandagriff, Stetson Bennett
As a freshman, Suggs averaged 14.0 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists. Against UCLA, the Minnesota native finished with 16 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists to go along with the game-winning basket. He was named a Second-Team All-American and seems like a surefire top pick in the 2021 NBA Draft.
Suggs will look to win a championship on Monday night against the Baylor Bears. The game is scheduled for a 9:20 tip time. Beck and Georgia will continue spring practice, with Georgia’s spring game set for April 17.
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