Jalen Allen Brooks (born May 7, 2000) is an American football wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at South Carolina.

Early life and education

Brooks was born on May 7, 2000, and grew up in Harrisburg, North Carolina. He attended Northwestern High School before transferring

Hickory Ridge High School Hickory Ridge High School is a comprehensive public high school in Harrisburg, North Carolina. It became the sixth high school in the Cabarrus County Schools Cabarrus County Schools is a local education agency headquartered in Concord, North C ...

, recording 44 receptions for 771 yards with nine touchdowns as a

senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

. He committed to play

at Division II Wingate. He also ran

track Track or Tracks may refer to: Routes or imprints * Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity * Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across * Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...

at Wingate. As a true

freshman A freshman, fresher, first year, or frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. Ara ...

at Wingate in 2018, Brooks played 12 games and posted 17 receptions for 297 yards and four touchdowns. The following year, he started 11 of his 12 appearances, and tallied 751 receiving yards off 35 catches with six scores. He had 100-yard games against Virginia–Wise, Newberry and UNC Pembroke, while contributing to Wingate's 10–2 record and playoff berth. Brooks was named first-team All- South Atlantic Conference for his performance. Brooks initially transferred to

Tarleton State Tarleton State University is a public university with its main campus in Stephenville, Texas. It is a founding member of the Texas A&M University System and enrolled over 14,000 students in the fall of 2020. History John Tarleton Agricultural ...

in 2020, but before the season started transferred again to South Carolina. He was denied eligibility until the fifth game of the season, and ended up playing six contests, four as a starter, while making 11 receptions for 100 yards. In 2021, Brooks started the first six games and recorded 14 catches for 181 yards with one score, before leaving the team for personal reasons. Brooks returned to South Carolina prior to the 2022 season. He started all 12 games and registered 33 catches for 504 yards (both placing second on the team) with one touchdown, additionally posting four rushes for 51 yards and another score. He missed the

Gator Bowl The Gator Bowl is an annual college football bowl game held in Jacksonville, Florida, operated by Gator Bowl Sports. It has been held continuously since 1946, making it the sixth oldest college bowl, as well as the first one ever televised natio ...

for an off-field issue and afterwards declared for the NFL Draft.

Professional career

Brooks was one of five South Carolina players invited to the 2023 NFL Combine. He was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the seventh round (244th overall) of the 2023 NFL Draft.

Regular season

References

External links

Dallas Cowboys bio

Wingate Bulldogs bio

Tarleton State Texans bio

South Carolina Gamecocks bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brooks, Jalen 2000 births Living people Dallas Cowboys players People from Harrisburg, North Carolina Players of American football from North Carolina South Carolina Gamecocks football players Tarleton State Texans football players Wingate Bulldogs football players American football wide receivers