Week 7's "Sunday Night Football" matchup between the Miami Dolphins and Philadelphia Eagles is one that has likely been circled on the calendars of Alabama Crimson Tide fans for some time.
It'll mark the first time that Jalen Hurts and Tua Tagovailoa, the two former Alabama standout quarterbacks, will share the field since their time as college teammates.
In his freshman season, Tagovailoa replaced a struggling Hurts in the 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship against the Georgia Bulldogs. Coach Nick Saban made the decision to bench Hurts, who was 3-of-8 for 21 yards, as the Crimson Tide faced a 13-0 deficit at halftime.
In the end, Tagovailoa connected with current Eagles receiver DeVonta Smith on a game-winning touchdown pass in a 26-23 overtime comeback victory. "He just stepped in and did his thing," Hurts said after the national championship. "He's built for stuff like this. I'm so happy for him."
Hurts was Tagovailoa's backup the following season, then transferred to Oklahoma.
"He went down a different road than I did to get to where I'm at," Tagovailoa said of Hurts before Week 7. "And he had to go down a different road to get to where he's at. But like I said, I got a lot of respect for him -- who he is as a person, who he is as a player and wish him the best of luck as we play him."
Both signal-callers have seen significant success in college and in their NFL careers -- and here are the numbers that prove it:
Overall records
Hurts appeared in 56 total games at Alabama and Oklahoma combined and finished with a record of 51-5. He is third in Crimson Tide history with 26 wins as a starting quarterback.
He is 31-19-1 in 51 games with Philadelphia.
Tagovailoa went 30-2 at Alabama, including a 22-2 record as a starter. For the Dolphins, he is 28-14 in his career.
Statistics
Hurts finished with an overall collegiate completion percentage of 65.1 with 9,477 yards and 80 touchdowns. He is one of 17 players in FBS history to rush for 40 touchdowns and pass for 40 touchdowns. Hurts' status as a dual-threat helped him make the record books for both programs as he is third in Alabama history for career touchdowns with 71 and holds Oklahoma's single-season rushing record for a quarterback with 1,298 yards.
Through six games this season, he leads NFL quarterbacks with five rushing touchdowns, and trails only Lamar Jackson for rushing yards with 253.
In his 51 games with Philly, Hurts has totaled 9,448 yards through the air, 51 passing touchdowns and 26 interceptions, completing 63% of his passes.
Tagovailoa ended his college tenure with a 69.2 completion percentage, 7,442 yards and 87 touchdowns. He has the most single-game (seven), single-season (48) and career (96) touchdowns in program history
This season, he leads the NFL with 1,876 yards and 14 touchdowns.
He has a 66.5 completion percentage for 9,891 yards, 66 touchdowns and 28 interceptions in his four years with Miami.
Accolades and milestones
Hurts led Alabama to a 12-0 record in 2016 and earned SEC Freshman of the Year honors. He was a CFP national champion the following year. In his lone season at Oklahoma, Hurts finished as a runner-up in 2019's Heisman Trophy voting. He was selected as the 53rd overall pick in the second round of the 2020 NFL draft.
Last season, he was a finalist for the NFL MVP and earned Pro Bowl honors for leading the Eagles to their first Super Bowl appearance since 2018 after a 14-3 regular season as the NFC's top seed.
As a freshman, Tagovailoa was the MVP in the CFP national championship game and finished as a Heisman Trophy runner-up in the following year. He was the fifth overall selection of the 2020 NFL draft.
He was the NFL's passer rating leader in 2022 and received his first Pro Bowl nod.