Hicks He Going To Be Great?

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, anyone and everyone, I am answering the question you all have been waiting for all season. A good, long look at Jaden Hicks will answer the question: Will he be great? 

Even though my crystal ball is broken, I’ll make sure to let you know all about Jaden Hicks potential future success in the NFL.

Who Is Jaden Hicks?

No one is quite sure. Hicks isn’t NFL-famous just yet (possibly ever), so his Wikipedia page is woefully lacking.

Hicks is a baby whose birth year will only serve to make me feel 100 years old. He has an older brother, Kalen. Jaden was born to Lamont and Laura Hicks and grew up in Las Vegas. In his junior year of high school at Bishop Gorman High School, he had seven interceptions, with three being pick-sixes.

COVID messed with Jaden’s football career quite a bit. He didn’t get a senior year playing in high school, which affected his ability to be recruited by colleges and limited his playing portfolio.

But before we get into that, we will enjoy a story about him playing as a child. At just six years old, Mini Hicks played on his older brother’s tackle football team of 10-year-olds. Lamont wasn’t keen on his son playing tackle football before 10, but an injury to one of the defensemen and Jaden’s innate football talent had other ideas. Jaden’s future neurological health does not thank anyone in that situation. 

In the youngest Hicks’ son’s first play, he runs a toss, cuts it back, and heads straight down the middle for a touchdown. And at six and 16, and in a few years at 26, Jaden Hicks will bring that same energy to the gridiron each and every game. 

Why Washington State University?

Despite a lack of playing time, the three-star recruit from Las Vegas was on plenty of colleges’s minds. These colleges, to be specific: Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado, WSU (of course), Penn State, Boise State, UNLV, San Diego State, Colorado State, Fresno State, and Utah State. 

So why WSU, of all places? As a Washington native, I can promise you it’s not for its location or size. Pullman has small town vibes that seem about as exhilarating as a retirement community like Sequim. 

No, it wasn’t the school itself; it was the coach. Jaden’s older brother had worked with the previous Rainbow Warriors coach, Nick Rolovich, before the man was unceremoniously fired. Rolovich moved on to become a Cougar coach and both Hicks’ brothers’s coach. Jaden took Kalen’s recommendation so seriously that he chose WSU over everywhere else.

To me, that indicates loyalty. Maybe not big-brain thinking, but loyal. That could come in handy for the team that drafts him in a few months. Rolovich was fired in Jaden’s first year, but he decided to remain a Cougar anyway. Read about the whole COVID-19 vax scandal that has Nick suing WSU for the big bucks. At least he wasn’t fired back-to-back for a lack of talent. 

Letter Of Recommendation

This isn’t exactly a job application, but a letter of recommendation from his college head coach and Nick Rolovich replacer, Jake Dickert, can’t hurt.

He was quoted as saying about what makes Jaden Hicks special: “I think it’s maturity. I think maturity is the first thing that comes out. He’s focused, He’s smart, he’s detailed, he wants to get better. He takes coaching. He practices really hard, and he sees the results of his work. I think he’s a great example, just for a lot of other guys on our team, that everyone wants to play and everyone uses this term very loosely — he comes out every day ready to work.”

What that means sans coach speak? I have no clue. What would this mean if Hicks was being rated 1-5?Not even Dickert knows. But it sounds good!

Hicks Hicking

As the saying goes, let Hicks hick. What does that mean? We only have a limited idea.

In Jaden’s first season at WSU, he red-shirted after one game.

In 2022, the cornerback-now-safety started 11 out of 13 games and had 76 tackles, one sack, and one interception. One of the best in the Pac-12. He also played at a bowl.

Hicks returned as a starter in 2023. Despite being just a red-shirt sophomore, Jaden is leaving his college days behind and has already pledged to the 2024 draft. Is that a risk? Sure. Do I think that’s a good idea? Maybe.

Due to a lack of time playing in high school and only two years of playing in college, we have limited data on Mr. Hicks. He has good stats where he has stats. As an eternal optimist, I will give Jaden Hicks my stamp of approval (which means nothing) as a good draft selection. What do you think?

Want to read more about draft stuff? I don’t have any more in my writer profile here. But you can catch all things NFL draft here.