King of catches Jalen Royals makes history at USU
Utah State wide receiver Jalen Royals is having an extraordinary season for the Aggies. The junior transfer is second on the team in receptions to Terrell Vaughn (54) and leads the team in receiving touchdowns (11) and yards (821). He ranks in the top 40 in the country in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns. So why are many Aggie fans just learning his name for the first time?
Last season was Royals’ first in Logan, and despite playing in 12 games for the Aggies, he did not record a single statistic. USU wide receivers coach Kyle Cefalo said this was never due to a lack of ability but was more about a combination of circumstances, one being the depth of the wide receiver corps a year ago.
Royals said he was able to learn from former teammates like Brian Cobbs, Justin McGriff and Xavier Williams, who motivated him to continue to improve.
Royals burst on the scene late, as USU had never heard of him until less than two months before the start of fall camp. Cefalo said Royals was able to grab the coaching staff’s attention at a summer recruiting camp in 2022.
JACK LEWIS BURTON Jalen Royals catches a touchdown pass from Cooper Legas at Maverick Stadium on Oct. 7, 2023.
“He just kind of showed up. He got an invite in the mail randomly out in Georgia, and he showed up to the camp,” Cefalo said. “He introduced himself to me, and I’d never met him before. I didn’t know anything about him.”
According to Cefalo, USU is in the practice of sending “random camp invites,” like the one Royals received, to junior colleges throughout the country.
Luckily for the Aggies, Royals had his father DeAndre to push him to attend the camp. Royals said he played a big role in supporting his football journey.
“He was reaching out to coaches and trying to get me to places and you know, trying to get me to go on visits and stuff like that. In high school, that was a big influence,” Royals said.
Cefalo said it’s uncommon for a player who coaches aren’t familiar with to show up for a recruitment camp, but Royals’ abilities spoke for themselves.
“Usually you kind of know the kids coming. If it’s a high school kid, you’ve already watched his tape,” Cefalo said. “When they come to the camps, you already are familiar with him. You’ve seen his tape and you want to see him work out in person. But then [Royals] just started to have a really, really good camp.”
Cefalo said two weeks later, Royals was enrolled in school and on the team.
Athleticism has always been natural for Royals, whose speed and jumping ability have helped him be an effective route runner. A three-sport athlete in high school, he played basketball and track and field in addition to football. As a senior in 2021, Royals placed sixth at the Georgia class 7A Track and Field Championships in the high jump. Despite such success, Royals said his favorite pastime was always on the court.
“I might be better at basketball, honestly,” Royals said.
A combo guard in high school, Royals got to compete against some of the best the state of Georgia had to offer. He lised former Auburn Tigers star Sharife Cooper, Cleveland Cavaliers forward Isaac Okoro and NBA All-Star Anthony Edwards as a few of the big-name hoopers he has played against.
On the gridiron, Royals believes there was a big change between last year, where he played a minimal role with zero catches, and this year, where he is third in the nation in touchdown receptions.
“Confidence, you know. That’s a big saying for me. I definitely try to improve on that because if you have no confidence, it’s kind of hard to go out there and play and ball out.” Royals said. “And then just consistency with catching the ball, running routes that’s really the difference right there.”
When asked what it meant to him to find himself among the nation’s best wide receivers this year, Royals’ answer was simple.
“It feels great…God put me in this position to allow me to show my skills out to the world and you know, keep doing what he asked me to do, and I’m doing it well,” he said.
Much of the credit for what Utah State has achieved this year in the passing game goes to the quarterbacks. While Utah State has had 3 different players take snaps at the quarterback position this year, they have still been able to maintain a high-octane passing attack. Cefalo gives credit to the QBs this year, as well as in past years for Utah State’s ability to attract players like Royals to the program.
“I think with what we do on offense, we do attract receivers because of the way we throw the ball around,” Cefalo said. “Our quarterbacks always put up good numbers and you know, wideouts know those things. Whether they’re a high school kid, or whether they’re a transfer, they do their research.”
Around the locker room, Royals is known for his calm demeanor, but sophomore defensive standout Ike Larsen said it doesn’t mean he won’t bring the energy when the time is right.
“Jalen is a silent assassin,” Larsen said. “He’s super quiet, but when he needs to get turned up or lit, he’ll get turned up or lit. But for the most part, he’s really chill, really quiet, just kind of keeps to himself a little bit.”
Larsen, who has posted impressive numbers against some talented wide receivers, made it clear guarding Royals is not something others look forward to.
“Shoot, nobody really wants to guard [Jalen] because he’s so fast, and he’s just so good,” Larsen said.
Royals and the Aggies will wrap up their season with a road contest at New Mexico on Nov. 24. Royals needs three more touchdown receptions to match Tracy Jenkins’ record for most touchdown receptions in a season by an Aggie.