Gonzaga’s Jalen Suggs was a star quarterback in high school
Before Jalen Suggs started hitting unforgettable shots for Gonzaga, he was a two-sport star at the high-school level in Minnesota.
The superb freshman sent the Bulldogs into the NCAA Final with an incredible shot to sink UCLA in overtime, 93-90, Saturday.
Everyone knows he is a star on the basketball court. What many don’t realize is he also starred as a quarterback for Minnehaha Academy, which went 25-1 and appeared in two state championships and winning one over his final two seasons.
During Minnehaha Academy’s 2018 state championship, Suggs took a shotgun snap from the left hashmark of the 11-yard line, sprinted past the hashmark on the opposite side and lofted a cross-body rainbow for a touchdown to his tight end. “It’s the most amazing throw,” head coach Chris Goodwin said. “I can’t even believe it when I see it now.”
On his opponent’s ensuing drive, Suggs picked off a pass and returned it 97 yards for a touchdown. A five-point game was now a 19-point game. Game over.
Suggs finished his senior year averaging 9.6 yards per rushing attempt. He also averaged 8.8 yards per passing attempt, had a 6-to-1 touchdown-to-interception ratio and nabbed four interceptions, two of which were pick-sixes.
Ohio State was interested as was Georgia.
Beyond blessed to have received a scholarship from the University of Georgia for football🙏🏽 pic.twitter.com/fCXVZgSout
— Jalen Suggs (@JalenSuggs2020) December 24, 2018
“We offered him, and in the end, just didn’t feel like he was going to throw it well enough to come in and play right away,” coach Ryan Day said, in an interview with Yahoo Sports. “I felt like if he spent 100% of his time on football, he had a chance to develop as a quarterback. He was just raw.”
Suggs’ father is Larry Suggs, who is second cousins with former Ravens outside linebacker Terrell Suggs, who lived in Jalen’s native Minnesota until moving to Arizona in the ninth grade.
… As a senior, he was named Minnesota’s Mr. Football after passing for 2,213 yards and 25 touchdowns, rushing for 978 yards and 12 touchdowns and leading his high school team to a runner-up finish in the state playoffs. He also had nine interceptions on defense, returning two for touchdowns.
Some of Suggs’ gridiron highlights:
