Eagles LB Jalyx Hunt becomes fan favorite with his unique gesture for Philly high school basketball teens

Houston Christian's alumni Jalyx Hunt boosted his professional football career with the Eagles roster as the 94th overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft this year, and since then, his rise on the Eagle's roster has been meteoric. This year, he received an invitation to the Super Bowl.

On Sunday, Hunt ventured into a heartwarming initiative, as he donated basketball equipment to Philadelphia high school teenagers. Jason Dumas, a sports reporter at 6abcactionnews, tweeted about Hunt's touching effort.

"Jalyx Hunt is quickly becoming a fan favourite. Last week, he raised enough money to donate basketball equipment and Uniforms to a bunch of Philly High Schools, essentially saving the season for dozens of Philly teens. He gets it," wrote Dumas.

The rookie attended the Flyers' camp in September, gaining a glimpse of what is to come on the NFL roster. He spoke about the 'grind' and the bonds he forged with his fellow players. In a report by NBC Sports Philadelphia, he spoke about his teammates.

"There’s not too much vet vs. everybody else treatment here. I mean, you have your duties as a rookie, but everybody looks out for one another and tries to include everyone in everything."

His overall experience has been exhilarating. Hunt believes he has learned a lot but still needs to learn a lot, and he is ready.

"I think with the team we have this year and the amount of wisdom we have on the team and the type of character we have, it just made it so much better. I learned a lot. I am still learning. I’m just ready for the season.”

Hunt even talked about his rookie season goal.

“I would like to play consistently every play. I want my first play to look like my last play of the game. I want my first play of the season to look like my last play of the season.”

Although Eagle's defensive line has been hit hard with Graham's arm injury and Huff's wrist surgery, Hunt's performance on the Eagles roster is on the rise. With the vacuum created by Huff's injury, Eagles' defensive coordinator Vic Fangio passed the opportunity to Hunt. Over the past four games, he has scored 38% of defensive snaps. With that, the rookie has not disappointed. But as the days inch closer with Huff's return, it poses a complication for Fangio.

The curious case of Jalyx Hunt's naming ceremony

Hunt has a different and unique name, and the reason is none other than a perfume named Calyx. Hunt's mom, Jaaqua, is fond of Calyx by Clnique, and since everyone in the family has a name starting with J, to keep the family tradition alive, she named her son Jalyx.

Jalyx Hunt was inducted into the Eagles' roster in April this year. Earlier, he had played college football for Cornell and Houston Christian and amassed a couple of accolades. Along with receiving a Super Bowl invitation, he has also been hailed as the Southland Conference Defensive Player of the Year in 2023.

Scouting director Brandon Hunt praised the rookie and called him a "smart kid."

"He loves football. He's a really smart kid. The sky is the limit on what this guy can do. He's only been playing linebacker for two years, so putting him in the room with all of our guys at that position, in the room with Coach (Jeremiah) Washburn and Coach (Vic) Fangio. We're so excited to see what this guy can do."