Maurice Roy Hurst Jr. (born May 9, 1995) is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

defensive tackle for the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (A ...

of the

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(NFL). He played college football at

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

, and was drafted by the Oakland Raiders in the fifth round of the 2018 NFL Draft.

Early years

Hurst grew up in Canton, Massachusetts, where he was raised by his mother Nicole Page. He is the son of former New England Patriot Maurice Hurst He graduated from

Xaverian Brothers High School , motto_translation = To bear witness to the truth in brotherhood , accreditation = New England Association of Schools and Colleges , rival = St. John's Prep , mascot = Hawk , mascot image = , sports ...

Westwood, Massachusetts Westwood is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 16,266 at the time of the 2020 United States Census. History Westwood was first settled in 1641 and was part of the town of Dedham, originally called 'West De ...

, where he was a three-year starter for the varsity football team, playing on the varsity team as a freshman. Hurst was a two-time first-team all-state player in Massachusetts during the 2011 and 2012 seasons and participated in the 2013 Semper Fidelis All-American Bowl.

College career

In 2014, Hurst earned his first varsity letter after appearing in seven games. On October 15, 2015, the Maxwell Football Club added Hurst to the

Chuck Bednarik Award The Chuck Bednarik Award is presented annually to the defensive player in college football as judged by the Maxwell Football Club to be the best in the United States. The award is named for Chuck Bednarik, a former college and professional Ameri ...

Watch List. On September 24, 2016, Hurst was a

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College Big Ten Team of the Week honoree for his six tackles and 1 sack performance against Penn State. Hurst garnered Academic All-Big Ten recognition in 2014 and 2015. During the 2017 season, Hurst set a career high in tackles with 59, while his 13.5 tackles for loss ranked sixth in the conference. Following the 2017 season, Hurst was named to the All-Big Ten defensive first-team by both the coaches and the media.

Professional career

Hurst was invited to the 2018 NFL Combine, but could not participate after being diagnosed with a heart condition. Despite the condition, he was cleared to play football and participate in Michigan's pro day.

Oakland / Las Vegas Raiders

2018

Hurst was projected to be anywhere from the top 5 to a mid first-round pick, but due to his heart condition, his draft stock plummeted. He was drafted by the Oakland Raiders in the fifth round (140th overall) of the 2018 NFL Draft. In Week 2 of his rookie season, he recorded his first career sack against the Denver Broncos. In Week 4 against the

, Hurst sacked quarterback Baker Mayfield in a 45–42 overtime win. In Week 10 against the

Los Angeles Chargers The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division, and ...

, Hurst made his third sack of the season off quarterback

Philip Rivers Philip Michael Rivers (born December 8, 1981) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons, primarily with the Chargers franchise. He played college football at NC State and was se ...

in a 20–6 loss. In Week 11 against the Arizona Cardinals, Hurst sacked

Josh Rosen Joshua Ballinger Lippincott Rosen (born February 10, 1997) is an American football quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the UCLA Bruins, receiving Freshman All-American and ...

in a 23–21 win. He received an overall grade of 72.4 from

in 2018, which ranked as the 46th highest grade among all qualifying interior defenders.

2019

In week 5 against the Chicago Bears, Hurst sacked quarterback Chase Daniel twice in the 24–21 win. In week 9 against the Detroit Lions, Hurst recovered a fumble lost by

Matthew Stafford John Matthew Stafford (born February 7, 1988) is an American football quarterback for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Georgia, where he was a first-team All-American, and was selected ...

in the 31–24 win. In week 11 against the Cincinnati Bengals, Hurst recovered a fumble forced by teammate

Maxx Crosby Maxx Robert Crosby (born August 22, 1997) is an American football defensive end for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Eastern Michigan and was drafted by the Raiders in the fourth round of ...

on Ryan Finley in the 17–10 win. In week 14 against the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division, and play their hom ...

, Hurst recorded his first career interception off a pass thrown by

Ryan Tannehill Ryan Timothy Tannehill III (born July 27, 1988) is an American football quarterback for the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Texas A&M, where he was a wide receiver until his junior year, an ...

and made a 55-yard return during the 42–21 loss.

2020

Hurst was placed on the reserve/

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list by the Raiders on October 6, 2020, and activated from the list on October 20. Hurst was waived after the season on April 15, 2021.

San Francisco 49ers

On April 23, 2021, Hurst signed a one-year contract with the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

. He was placed on injured reserve on September 1, 2021. He was activated from injured reserve on October 2. On March 10, 2022, Hurst re-signed with the 49ers. He was released by the team on April 11, but re-signed on a one-year deal the same day. He was placed on injured reserve on August 1, 2022 with a torn bicep, ending his season.

Cleveland Browns

On March 18, 2023, Hurst signed a one-year contract with the

References

External links

Michigan Wolverines biotwitter
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hurst, Maurice Jr. 1995 births Living people People from Canton, Massachusetts People from Westwood, Massachusetts Players of American football from Norfolk County, Massachusetts Xaverian Brothers High School alumni All-American college football players American football defensive tackles Michigan Wolverines football players Las Vegas Raiders players Oakland Raiders players San Francisco 49ers players Cleveland Browns players