Once overlooked, SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings has his sights set on Nick Saban, Timothée Chalamet and more

On Rhett Lashlee’s first day as SMU head coach, November 29, 2021, he Googled who he had signed in the Mustangs’ recruiting class.

Former coach Sonny Dykes had taken virtually the entire staff across town to TCU, and Lashlee had to completely rebuild, especially the recruiting staff. The major recruiting websites told him that SMU didn’t have a quarterback in its class. That had to change.

A few days later, Lashlee traveled to Frisco to watch South Oak Cliff, an up-and-coming high school program in downtown Dallas, take on Lovejoy in the Texas high school playoffs. Lashlee had to reconnect with programs and coaches in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and scout players after two years in Miami. South Oak Cliff had several Division I contenders, so this game made sense. Lashlee and offensive coordinator Casey Woods checked a receiver, a cornerback and a linebacker. But one lesser-known player continued to impress them.

“It was obvious their quarterback was different,” Lashlee said. “I looked at Casey and said, ‘What did I miss about this kid?’ You watched him constantly. He wasn’t an athlete. He played quarterback, hit his back foot and got the ball out on time.”

Kevin Jennings committed to Missouri State, his only Division I scholarship offer. SOC defeated Lovejoy 42-20 and Jennings threw for 250 yards with three total touchdowns.

After the game, according to SOC offensive coordinator Jacoby Walker, a Missouri State coach in attendance came up to him and said, “Kev played great, but I think he played too well.”

Jennings would not remain loyal to Missouri State for long.

Three years later, he is the most underrated player in the country according to Nick Saban. Actor Timothée Chalamet recently launched the 2025 Heisman push for Jennings on ESPN’s “College GameDay.”

TIMOTHÉE CHALAMET ELITE BALL KNOWLEDGE 😤 😂 @RealChalamet pic.twitter.com/Vci23UK8nx

– College GameDay (@CollegeGameDay) December 7, 2024

A week after that performance against Lovejoy, SMU offered and Jennings committed. He then led SOC to Dallas ISD’s first state championship since 1958. Last year, in his first career start, Jennings won SMU’s first conference championship in four decades. Now he’s taken the Mustangs to the College Football Playoff, where they’ll face Penn State on Saturday afternoon. It was a lot, but those close to him say nothing has changed.

“He’s as confident as any young man I’ve ever met,” Lashlee said. “At the same time, he’s incredibly humble, like he doesn’t walk around like that, but he knows it and his teammates know it.”

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Jennings arrived at SMU in 2022 as a raw talent. He played in four games but was red-shirted. He backed up Preston Stone in 2023, but when Stone suffered a leg injury in the regular-season finale, Jennings stepped in and filled in. He threw 33 passes in the AAC championship against Tulane, nearly as many as he had thrown in his previous SMU career, and led the Mustangs to a title and their 11th win, the second-most in school history.

At that point, other schools began asking Jennings to transfer. With Stone coming back, it seemed unlikely that Jennings would start at SMU.

“He had the opportunity to go somewhere else, have a guaranteed starting spot and make more money,” SMU athletic director Rick Hart said.

But Jennings stayed. SMU was one of the few places that trusted him when he came out of SOC. He reciprocated.

“I trusted the coaching staff and my brothers,” he said. “I didn’t want to let her down. I wanted to play ball with them. I trusted the staff and their ability to mold me into a great player.”

It was also no secret that SMU coaches loved Jennings’ upside. Even though Stone returned after a strong 2023 season, the staff had to figure out how to utilize Jennings’ skills. The quarterback competition was on. Stone won the starting job in fall camp, but Jennings would play.

A sign of the difficulty of the decision: Both Stone and Jennings were elected by their teammates as one of the six team captains.

“We believed in both of them,” Lashlee said. “You could see Kevin’s natural, God-given ability and you knew his ceiling was insanely high, and it was just a matter of, ‘We’ve got two good ones, let’s live them out.’ We don’t make decisions that way. The competition will decide.”

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The Mustangs almost stumbled out of the gate, ending any CFP hopes before they even started. Thanks to a series of self-inflicted errors, they trailed Nevada 24-13 heading into the fourth quarter of their Week 0 opener. The Mustangs rallied to win, but the quarterback situation remained unresolved. Stone threw an interception on his first pass and Jennings led the first touchdown drive, but Stone played most of the game.

When Stone struggled to get out of the gate in the third game against BYU, he was benched for Jennings. SMU lost 18-15 and Jennings’ numbers weren’t great, but they were one drive away from winning the game, reaching the red zone five times without scoring a touchdown.

A week later, Jennings completed 14 of 19 passes with two touchdowns to secure a stunning victory over TCU. The Mustangs were on track, winning nine straight games to reach the ACC Championship Game.

“My first impression was how raw he was,” said tight end Matt Hibner, who transferred from Michigan this year. “As we progressed through the season, his ability to read defenses and maintain composure in high-pressure situations improved. He has become a complete player.”

There were a few bumps along the way. Against Duke, Jennings threw three interceptions and fumbled the ball twice. He also broke a finger. SMU escaped with a win and a week later, Jennings completed 17 of 25 passes for 306 yards and two touchdowns in a blowout win over Pitt, the best game of his career.

“It showed his competitive nature and his makeup,” Lashlee said. “Nobody would have known that he would be back on his feet the next week with a broken finger, nobody would have had any idea.”

In the ACC title game against Clemson, turnovers occurred again as Jennings had a fumble and an interception early, but he recovered, threw for 304 yards and scored four total touchdowns, helping SMU overcome a 17-point deficit, but Clemson escaped Field goal after time expires.

Now Jennings is leading SMU into the playoffs. He has already confirmed that he is returning to the Mustangs for his fourth season. The ceiling is incredibly high. Saban and Chalamet both see it.

“He’s electric, man,” safety Isaiah Nwokobia said.

Jennings is still quiet in public. Teammates say the personality comes out the more you get to know him. At SOC, recruiters thought he was a product of the talent around him. SMU coaches saw more. Now it’s available for the rest of the world to see.

“When he plays, you can feel his strength,” Lashlee said. “It just showed what we already knew, honestly, and none of us were shocked by it.”

(Photo: Grant Halverson/Getty Images)