Mayden raising the bar

The expectations were high for Jalen Mayden entering his sophomore season.

The 6-foot-2, 195-pound quarterback had size, arm strength, athleticism and a reputation. He already held scholarship offers from Oregon State, Syracuse, and Houston. Then there was the family name. His oldest brother James Mayden is a standout at Rice and his other older brother Jared Mayden is a 2016 Rivals250 cornerback.

The bar was set high, and it is safe to say he exceeded any and all expectations. However, it did not start off on a positive note.

"Well, I actually started off my first varsity drive with an interception, because I threw a dig route and it got tipped and the safety caught it," Mayden said. "I was a little bit shaken up because that was my first drive. Coach (Northcutt) came all the way down from the pressbox, and was like, 'That's your first one and there's many more to come. You just have to keep playing football.'"

An interception on his first drive was not the only hurdle Mayden had to clear. There were several throughout the 2015 season, and it was at those times having his brother Jared on the sidelines proved to be a valuable asset.

"He really just kept me going,"Mayden said. "Everytime I would think that's a bad pass and dwell on it he would say pick your head up and move on to the next play. So he really helped with some encouragement."

One of the biggest hurdles for Mayden was learning to keep positive body language even in the worst of times.

"If we were losing by any amount I woud stay positive with the team and keep telling them we got this," Mayden said. "On most of those games we came all the way back and put up a good fight."

Games were one thing, but he also made sure to keep good body language in practice.

"I practiced good body language throughout practice," Mayden said. "If we ever had a slow part of practice I was trying to keep everybody excited and entertained."

When it came to the expectations of others, Mayden kept his focus on what he could control.

"Coach got my head right, just leave it all behind and try to stick to playing football because that's what we're doing," Mayden said.

And when it was all said and done, 2015 was a success. Mayden completed 178 of 271 passes for 2,496 yards, 32 touchdowns and only nine interceptions. He also ran for 513 yards and 5 TDs on 11 carries. His first district game earned national attention when he threw for 540 yards and more touchdowns than incompletions. After the season, he was named district offensive sophomore of the year.

In addition to his on-field performance Mayden has earned accolades for his efforts in community service. He has raised almost 2,000 pounds of food since September for the Life Messages Center in Rowlett, Texas as part of his See Me Beyond project for the NFL Prep Academy.

On the recruiting front he has continued to turn heads. Outside of the schools who have offered, Clemson and TCU are coming on the strongest. He took visits to Texas, TCU, Oklahoma, and Penn State in the fall, and he would like to take more in the spring.

"I'm trying to talk my mom into getting a visit to Clemson or Miami because I really do like Clemson and Miami at the moment," Mayden said. "And I know I'm going to visit the Texas schools like Texas, Baylor, and TCU."