TCU QB Max Duggan at Senior Bowl looking to follow NFL steps of Brock Purdy, Jalen Hurts
Quarterback Max Duggan continues to enjoy the spoils of a fairy tale season for him and TCU, as one of a school-record five Horned Frogs at the Senior Bowl this week looking open eyes and improve their stock for the 2023 NFL Draft.
Duggan opened the season a potential “priority free agent target” to turning himself himself to “a fourth or fifth round prospect” in a magical year when he went from losing his starting job to leading TCU to its first national championship game since 1938.
The other TCU players at the Senior Bowl this week are offensive lineman Steve Avila, wider receiver/kick returner Derius Davis, defensive lineman Dylan Hortan and linebacker Dee Winters.
“Yeah, I think it helped a lot,” Duggan said when asked how his season improved his draft stock. “You go in and play in the playoffs and you get into play against the best players in the country and compete at the highest level and in college football. And be under the lights, I think it just puts you in the spotlight you know ... I think it’s going to help you know. Me and all the other guys that were able to be a part of it and learn, moving on to the next chapter and even playing in this game against the best in the country to get to compete against each other is just gonna help all of us.”
Duggan is part of the first quarterback class at the Senior Bowl without a first-round prospect in more than a decade, per executive director Jim Nagy.
But the path for improving his stock and becoming a surprise impact quarterback in the NFL by veteran college prospect has already been paved for Duggan, who had 43 career starts at TCU.
Look no further than fellow former Big 12 quarterback Jalen Hurts and Brock Purdy, who faced off last Sunday in the NFC Conference title games with the Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers, respectively.
Hurts, who transferred from Alabama to Oklahoma for his final season, was a 2020 second-round pick and he knows has the Eagles in the Super Bowl.
Purdy was the final pick of the 2022 NFL Draft becoming coming off the bench lead the 49ers to the NFC West title and one win way from the Super Bowl, thanks to 31-7 loss to Hurts’ Eagles.
“This class is all in that fourth-, fifth-round group which is where Jalen Hurts was just three short years ago and now it’s pretty awesome to see Jalen in the Super Bowl,” Nagy said. “Jalen jumped into second (round) that year so I think it’s going to be a guy or two that gets into Day 2.”
“I think it can help in the sense that you’re always trying to self-scout yourself, and these teams are all doing that, and everyone’s thinking, ‘well why didn’t we take Purdy in the fifth or sixth or even before that?’” Nagy added.
Duggan, who passed for 3,698 yards and 32 touchdowns in 2022, wants to be that guy.
And Purdy and Hurt are natural targets for him as he played against both during his time at TCU.
“Yeah, I think it shows a lot of guys that have played a lot in college football and guys that have a lot of games under their belt and just continue to fight and believe in themselves.”
Nobody maximized their time and opportunity in college like Duggan, who needed unexpected heart surgery before his sophomore year and played most of 2021 with a broken bone in his foot.
And that was before losing his starting job before 2022 to redshirt freshman Chandler Morris. He regained after an injury and then led TCU on a meteoric rise that concluded with winning the Davey O’Brien Award as the nation’s top quarterback and runner up for the Heisman Trophy.
“It was pretty special. A lot of ups and downs, but I was supported and surrounded by a lot of great people whether it was family and friends, teammates, coaching staff, people at the university,” Duggan said. “It was just so many people in my corner that helped me get to this point and allow us to have the year that we did.”
Duggan said the Senior Bowl has been a fun experience so far and he’s looking forward to learning NFL systems and meeting scouts this week.
He wants to show them he can take the snap from center and lead an NFL offense.
“Just being able to show all around football knowledge,” Duggan said. “The Senior Bowl, NFL is a little bit different than college. You’re in a huddle. A lot of college team teams really don’t do that. They have some lengthy play calls. Lead a group of men, run a whole operations which is different than the college style of play. I am excited to be part of that.
Duggan could have returned to TCU for another season but opted to enter the NFL Draft after talking to Nagy at the behest TCU coach Sonny Dykes.
Nagy told him he needed to strike while iron was hot.
“We had him like our latest late round grade,” Nagy said. “If he would have carried on that path it would have dropped to a priority free agent. And when Max called ... Sonny (Dykes) said just give him give me your feedback. And so Max and I spoke and I was really honest with him like, ‘Man, you’ve worked your way up and like being a PFA to probably that fourth- or fifth-round, a huge jump. And so we talked about striking while the iron was hot and the benefits of that. How could he not, he was getting ready to go to the Johnny Unitas in Baltimore the next day and then New York for the Heisman and then the college football playoff. “It’s a pretty good road you’re on right now.
“To go from seventh round PFA to fourth and fifth round, that’s a massive jump.”
So can he take another jump this week?
“Absolutely, I think anyone can . . . I use the example of Jalen but I think all these guys can,” Nagy said.
The Senior Bowl will be played on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. and will be broadcast on the NFL Network.
This story was originally published January 31, 2023 at 4:28 PM.
