After all that, turns out Jalen Hurts is actually an Oklahoma Sooner.

You might have thought that nine months ago when he declared his intentions to be a graduate transfer from Alabama and head to Norman. And you certainly could have believed that when he put on the OU jersey for the first time against Houston on Sept. 1.

But if you ask some OU fans, there was always a sneaky feeling of yea, but.

He’s a Sooner, yea, but it’s just a one-year rental.

He’s a Sooner, yea, but he’ll always be an Alabama guy.

He’s a Sooner, yea, but he’ll never wear OU apparel outside of games.

He’s a Sooner, yea, but it was just a business decision.

In the eyes of some, Hurts was never going to get what it means to be a Sooner. After a thrilling 34-27 victory against Texas in the annual Red River Showdown at the Cotton Bowl, Hurts get it. Not only does he get it, though, he’s embracing it.

“I wouldn't rather do it with any other group,” said Hurts following the game. “You talk about emotional ties that I have to this university. They are there now. For sure. OU DNA in me.”

Hurts leads the team in rushing with 630 yards and eight touchdowns, averaging 8.5 yards per attempt. As a quarterback, he has been better than advertised. He’s completed 98 of 137 passes (71 percent) for 1,758 yards with 17 touchdowns and just three interceptions.

He’s led OU to a 6-0 start and has the Sooners undefeated for the first time after Texas week since 2011. But that one comment about OU DNA? That might have won him more diehard fans than any of the 25 touchdowns he’s accounted for.

Hurts didn’t need to prove anything to his teammates. But the way he battled vs. the Longhorns when he clearly didn’t have his best stuff, said it all.

“What you guys have heard, we’ve all grinded together since the spring and the summertime,” senior defensive tackle Neville Gallimore said. “The conversation you guys are hearing, it’s a little deeper than that. But it’s good to hear him say that. We know how close we’ve gotten. He’s a part of this program. He’s family. He’s definitely made this place.”

It wasn’t breaking news to his teammates about Hurts’ public comments, but it did mean something. Senior wide receiver Nick Basquine said the team felt that camaraderie with Hurts almost from the jump, and Hurts let them know in his own way before the Houston game that OU was family.

That’s behind closed doors, though. Hurts has been known as much for his short, to-the-point interviews as he has been for his ability to run and throw through the first six games. So for Hurts to say something as impactful like that, it resonated. Even if they’ve heard it before, hearing it in a public setting just has a different meaning to it all.

“For him to voice it out in the public (did mean a lot),” Basquine said. “We got the vibe from him. He’s told us before that he feels like we’re his brothers and things of that nature.”

Hurts even got to put on the Golden Hat, earning one of the rare smiles people have seen from Hurts since arriving at OU.

“When you win a big football game or a big rivalry like that, it’s going to bring smiles out there,” junior wide receiver CeeDee Lamb said. “It’s all smiles, especially with your teammates. When you pull out a close one like that, the bond only gets bigger, if you will. You definitely saw the smile on his face that he was happy to be here.”

Maybe that was the only way it could happen. It had to be a baptism by fire. In the initial five games, the Sooners hadn’t been tested, not even in the slightest.

Hurts hadn’t seen any meaningful playing time in the fourth quarter because the Sooners didn’t need him. Against Texas, it was 20-17 entering the final 15 minutes. All Hurts did in that quarter was throw for a touchdown pass and run for the game-clinching one in orchestrating two 75-yard scoring drives.

That OU DNA slogan that gets talked about so much? Turns out, it’s been there all along.

“Well, I think as you go throughout the season whether you are a coach, a player or a leader on the team, you continue to learn more and more about the guys you are going to battle with,” head coach Lincoln Riley said. “Each situation presents new challenges and new opportunities to learn.

“So, I think he learned more about his teammates and kinda in that type of game and the different responses as the momentum swung back-and-forth. I definitely think there were some positives there. I don't know any other part of it. I don't know if I'd say rite of passage, but you feel the impact of what OU means, but you probably don't feel it a whole lot more than certainly on that weekend.”

The brotherhood there. The camaraderie clearly present. With everybody all on the same page, including the fan base embracing Hurts, the second half of the regular season cannot get here soon enough.