Alabama faced 2nd-and-10 from their own 19-yard-line on the second play of their Week 7 game vs. Missouri. Tua Tagovailoa took the shotgun snap, faked the handoff to Damien Harris, scanned his reads and launched to a wide-open Jerry Jeudy, who corralled the pass at the Tigers' 36-yard-line and glided into the end zone. One catch, 81 yards.
Two drives later, on 3rd-and-8 from their 13, Tagovailoa hit Jeudy for a 22-yard gain. Two catches, 103 yards.
And on Alabama's third drive of the second half, Tagovailoa connected again, this time for a 44-yard reception that pushed the Tide deep into Missouri territory. Three catches, 147 yards
Jeudy, a sophomore from Deerfield Beach, Fla., averaged 18.9 yards on 14 receptions (289 yards) as a true freshman last season. After that 147-yard effort in Week 7, he was averaging a staggering 27.1 yards on 26 catches (705 yards), by far the highest yards-per-reception average in the country.
His average dipped by two full yards with a five-catch, 72-yard game vs. Tennessee last week, but he's still the only receiver in the country averaging more than 24 yards per reception — and the only receiver averaging more than 19 yards on at least 30 receptions.
If Jeudy keeps his current pace of 4.43 receptions per game and 25.1 yards per reception, he'll break the FBS record set 36 years ago. Fresno State's Henry Ellard holds the record for yards per reception on at least 50 receptions. He averaged 24.4 yards on 62 catches (1,510 yards) in 1982.
Alabama is chasing something bigger — a sixth national championship in 10 years — but Jerry Jeudy is having a hell of a season.
