Jauan Jennings TD pass: QB-turned-WR throws Super Bowl 58's first touchdown to Christian McCaffrey

Bryan Murphy

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Jauan Jennings TD pass: QB-turned-WR throws Super Bowl 58's first touchdown to Christian McCaffrey image

Christian McCaffrey scoring the first touchdown was a popular prediction ahead of Super Bowl 58.

However, it's highly unlikely anyone correctly guessed which player would be the one passing to McCaffrey — wide receiver Jauan Jennings. 

In the second quarter of the 49ers-Chiefs championship contest on Sunday, head coach Kyle Shanahan elected to pull out his bag of tricks. With the offense struggling to put up points in the first half of the Super Bowl, the 49ers got creative, utilizing the double pass while in Kansas City territory. 

The gamble paid off. Quarterback Brock Purdy took the snap and initially tossed it to Jennings, who was behind him to his left. The San Francisco wide receiver then heaved the ball to the other side of the field, finding McCaffrey for the completion. The running back scampered 21 yards for the score, extending his team's lead to 10-0. 

The 49ers may have gotten away with a penalty on the play. CBS analyst Boomer Esiason noted that there was a San Francisco lineman five yards downfield when McCaffrey reeled in the toss from Jennings. A flag for illegal man downfield is typically called in those situations. 

Either way, the play counted, and now another creative display of offense has been added to the playoff history books. The Super Bowl has been home to a number of trick plays, including the Eagles' infamous "Philly Special" call where tight end Trey Burton found QB Nick Foles in the end zone.

With the play standing and Jennings later hauling in a touchdown reception from Purdy, Jennings joined Foles as the only two players in NFL history to to ever throw and catch a touchdown in the same Super Bowl. 

If the 49ers emerge victorious in Super Bowl 58, then the play between Jennings and McCaffrey undoubtedly will be a major talking point coming out of the contest. 

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It's no coincidence that Jennings was the player getting a chance to show off the arm for that specific playcall. The San Francisco wide receiver played his college ball at Tennessee, where he did have experience playing as a quarterback. 

Here is more on Jenning's past as a quarterback:

Jauan Jennings QB stats

Jennings played primarily as a wide receiver during his five years at Tennessee. However, he did get a few chances to toss the pigskin. 

In his career with the Volunteers, Jennings completed two pass attempts for 62 yards on five attempts.

Season Completions Attempts Yards TDs INTs
2015 1 2 58 1 0
2016 1 2 4 1 0
2017 — — — — —
2018 — — — — —
2019 0 1 0 0 0

His two completions weren't just random plays either. Both of his successful throws in college resulted in six points for his team, including a play that was very similar to the one executed by the 49ers in Super Bowl 58.

Jennings and the Vols completed a double pass against Florida in 2015, with Joshua Dobbs hitting Jennings first, and then taking a pass from the wide receiver 58 yards to the house. 

The most memorable moment involving Jennings and Dobbs at Tennessee came during the 2016 season, when Dobbs hit Jennings for a last-minute Hail Mary touchdown, lifting the Vols to a win over the Bulldogs. 

Bryan Murphy

Bryan Murphy Photo

Bryan Murphy joined The Sporting News in 2022 as the NHL/Canada content producer. Previously he worked for NBC Sports on their national news desk reporting on breaking news for the NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL, in addition to covering the 2020 and 2022 Olympic Games. A graduate of Quinnipiac University, he spent time in college as a beat reporter covering the men’s ice hockey team.