BuccaneersFan.com • Player Spotlight • Tampa Bay No. 17
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Wide receiver • Rookie season
A Georgia journey reaches the Tampa Bay end zone
Ted Hurst III
- Born
- July 2, 2004
- Hometown
- Savannah, Georgia
- Listed size
- 6 feet 3 inches • 195 pounds
- High school
- Sol C. Johnson High School • Savannah, Georgia
- College
- Valdosta State, 2022–2023
Georgia State, 2024–2025 - NFL entry
- 2026 NFL Draft • Round 3 • No. 84 overall
- NFL debut
- September 13, 2026 • Started at Cincinnati
- Current team
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers • Active roster
Sources: current Buccaneers listing, 2026 Buccaneers media guide, p. 242, Georgia State biography and the opening-day gamebook. Measurements follow the current team listing.
Sources: the first-touchdown highlight, Georgia State’s draft announcement and the school’s career retrospective. NFL statistics are current through November 1, 2026 (Week 8), checked November 3.
Ted Hurst III introduced his scoring ability to Tampa Bay with a play that traveled 40 yards. Baker Mayfield found the rookie against Minnesota, putting a first NFL touchdown beside a name Buccaneers fans were still getting to know. The moment belongs to his opening chapter in Tampa, with the rest still taking shape. Watch the first NFL score.
Hurst arrived as Georgia State’s highest NFL draft selection. That distinction followed two productive seasons with the Panthers. His path gives this spotlight several places to begin: a college finish in the final seconds, a school receiving record, or the evening a third-round selection made the next move official. Each helps explain why Tampa Bay brought him into its receiving room. Georgia State marks his selection.
Valdosta → Atlanta → Tampa Bay
Three chapters, a growing receiving role
Valdosta State, 2022–2023 Starting in Division II.
Hurst began college football with the Blazers and caught 60 passes for 1,027 yards and ten touchdowns across two seasons. His receptions increased from 22 in his first year to 38 in his second. Valdosta State gave him his first sustained college experience and the opportunity to make important catches before moving into Football Bowl Subdivision competition at Georgia State. His college biography.
Georgia State, 2024–2025 Making a place in the record book.
He led the Panthers in receiving during both seasons. His first produced 961 yards and a school-record nine touchdown catches; his second brought 1,004 yards. He earned second-team All-Sun Belt recognition in 2024 and first-team honors in 2025. The move to Atlanta therefore produced both a larger stage and a clear record of sustained production. Georgia State’s account of his two seasons.
Tampa Bay, 2026–present A draft pick becomes a Buccaneer.
The Buccaneers selected Hurst 84th overall on April 24, 2026. He signed his four-year rookie contract on May 8, the day the club opened rookie minicamp practice. Draft night established his destination; the spring sessions began the work of learning an NFL offense and finding a place among Tampa Bay’s receivers. The transaction record; his signing and minicamp arrival.
September 27, 2026 • Raymond James Stadium
Forty yards to a first NFL touchdown
First NFL touchdown
40 YDS
MAYFIELD → HURST III
Week 3 • vs. Minnesota
A first trip to the NFL end zone.
With 6:44 remaining in the first quarter, Hurst completed a 40-yard touchdown reception from Mayfield. The Buccaneers identified it as his first NFL score. It was his lone catch that afternoon, making one reception account for all of his receiving yardage and his first regular-season touchdown. The official scoring record; the team highlight.
Minnesota won 23–16, so the milestone came in a game Tampa Bay could not finish with a victory. Hurst’s touchdown remains a distinct moment within that result: an early connection with his quarterback and a first entry in the NFL scoring column. It is the play to revisit when tracing how his rookie receiving record began. The final gamebook.
From the scouting room to the practice field
Learning to use the opportunity
After the draft, vice president of player personnel Mike Biehl described Hurst as a receiver with speed, size and room to improve his route running. Biehl also pointed to his performance against the competition at the Senior Bowl. Tampa Bay saw a potential outside receiver who could develop under Bryan McClendon, with an initial role to be earned through the offseason. That assessment framed his arrival as the beginning of a learning process. The club’s draft-day evaluation.
By August 18, Mayfield was describing progress. He said Hurst was picking up the offense quickly, reducing hesitation and making effective use of his ability to reach the ball in contested situations. The quarterback’s comments connected the physical traits to something practical: understanding an assignment well enough to play it at speed. It was an encouraging training-camp assessment from the player who would later throw his first regular-season touchdown. Mayfield on Hurst’s development.
NFL regular season • Through Week 8
The opening eight games
Hurst started his NFL debut at Cincinnati and caught three passes for 36 yards. Through November 1, he has played in all eight Tampa Bay games, made four starts and collected 11 receptions for 168 yards and one touchdown. The weekly record follows that first season, including games when he played without making a reception. His debut gamebook; the current team record.
The weekly record follows the original NFL gamebooks, including starting lineups and substitutions. Hurst appeared in all eight games; a zero in the receiving columns does not mean he missed the game. His rookie-season totals are also his NFL career totals. Sources: the current team game log and the gamebooks below.
2026 regular-season receiving and participation
| Week | Date | Opponent | Tampa Bay result | G | GS | TGT | REC | YDS | AVG | LNG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 09/13 | @ Cincinnati | L 27–33 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 36 | 12.0 | 16 | 0 |
| 2 | 09/20 | Cleveland | L 19–23 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 2 | 27 | 13.5 | 21 | 0 |
| 3 | 09/27 | Minnesota | L 16–23 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 40 | 40.0 | 40 | 1 |
| 4 | 10/04 | Green Bay | L 14–17 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 25 | 12.5 | 21 | 0 |
| 5 | 10/08 | @ Dallas | W 24–16 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | 10/18 | Pittsburgh | L 19–26 (OT) | 1 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 40 | 13.3 | 22 | 0 |
| 7 | 10/25 | @ Carolina | W 43–13 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | 11/01 | Atlanta | W 16–0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2026 / career | Through W8 | Tampa Bay | Team 3–5 | 8 | 4 | 24 | 11 | 168 | 15.3 | 40 | 1 |
G = games played; GS = starts; TGT = targets; REC = receptions; YDS = receiving yards; AVG = yards per reception; LNG = longest reception; TD = receiving touchdowns. A dash in AVG means no receptions. Hurst started Weeks 1, 2, 4 and 7. Week 5 was an actual appearance with no targets. Scores list Tampa Bay first; @ indicates an away game and OT means overtime. The highlighted row marks his first NFL touchdown.
Original NFL gamebooks: W1, W2, W3, W4, W5, W6, W7, W8. Totals include regular-season games only.
NFL postseason: Hurst is in his rookie season and has no NFL playoff appearances through this update.
Two college programs • Two memorable finishes
The catches that changed a game
At Valdosta State on October 28, 2023, Hurst helped settle a game in its final minute. Sammy Edwards found him for a 28-yard touchdown at West Florida, giving the Blazers their first lead and the eventual 31–28 victory. Hurst finished with six catches for 84 yards. The decisive reception came with 36 seconds remaining, putting a dramatic finish into his second college season. Valdosta State’s original game report.
A similar opportunity arrived at Georgia State on September 14, 2024. Christian Veilleux connected with Hurst for a 25-yard touchdown with 15 seconds left, lifting the Panthers over Vanderbilt, 36–32. Hurst caught seven passes for 128 yards and two scores that night. Afterward, he described recognizing man coverage and trusting that the quarterback would give him a chance, connecting the winning play to work they had already done in practice. The original Vanderbilt recap.
College receiving by season
| Season | School | G | REC | YDS | AVG | LNG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Valdosta State | 11 | 22 | 431 | 19.6 | 58 | 6 |
| 2023 | Valdosta State | 14 | 38 | 596 | 15.7 | 49 | 4 |
| 2024 | Georgia State | 12 | 56 | 961 | 17.2 | 76 | 9 |
| 2025 | Georgia State | 12 | 71 | 1,004 | 14.1 | 70 | 6 |
| Career | 2022–2025 | 49 | 187 | 2,992 | 16.0 | 76 | 25 |
G = games played. The remaining abbreviations follow the NFL receiving table. Valdosta State competed in NCAA Division II; Georgia State competed in the FBS. Hurst’s 49 college appearances comprise 11 and 14 at Valdosta State, then 12 in each Georgia State season. The three 2023 playoff games are included. Starts are omitted because a complete four-season starting record was not established. Averages use yards divided by receptions, rounded to one decimal; career LNG is the longest single reception.
Original final school and conference statistics: Valdosta State 2022, Valdosta State 2023, Georgia State 2024, Georgia State 2025. These season records resolve the inconsistent 47-game career figure in the Buccaneers biography.
Division II postseason receiving • included in college totals
| Date | Round | Opponent | Valdosta State result | G | REC | YDS | AVG | LNG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-11-18 | First round | Limestone | W 62–41 | 1 | 3 | 41 | 13.7 | 25 | 1 |
| 2023-11-25 | Second round | @ Delta State | W 38–31 | 1 | 6 | 74 | 12.3 | 22 | 0 |
| 2023-12-02 | Quarterfinal | Lenoir-Rhyne | L 7–35 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 playoffs | 3 appearances | Included above | 2–1 | 3 | 9 | 115 | 12.8 | 25 | 1 |
All three rows are actual NCAA Division II playoff appearances. Hurst played against Lenoir-Rhyne despite recording no catches. The three games, nine receptions, 115 yards and one touchdown are already included in his 2023 season and college career totals; do not add them again. He had no FBS bowl appearances at Georgia State.
Original playoff box scores and participation records: Limestone, Delta State, Lenoir-Rhyne. Scores list Valdosta State first; @ indicates an away game.
Savannah roots • Academic recognition • A new community
The people and places around the receiver
Home, family and education
At Sol C. Johnson High School in Savannah, Hurst played football and basketball. He earned first-team all-region and All-Greater Savannah recognition as a senior receiver before signing with Valdosta State in 2022. His hometown school district later celebrated his NFL selection, connecting the new Buccaneer to the classrooms and teams that preceded college. The district’s recognition of its former student.
In an October 2026 interview with WSAV, Hurst and his mother, Deanna, looked back on draft night. She recalled the family receiving the news by phone before the television announcement. Hurst credited his family’s support through practices and workouts, and spoke about continuing to work after reaching the NFL. Their account gives the draft a personal setting: the selection was public, but the preparation had involved people who had been beside him for years. WSAV’s interview, republished by AOL.
Georgia State also records achievement in the classroom. Hurst earned Dean’s List recognition in spring 2025, fall 2025 and spring 2026, along with a place on the 2024–2025 Sun Belt Academic Honor Roll. Those honors add an academic strand to his time in Atlanta, extending the account of his college years beyond catches, yardage and football awards. Georgia State’s academic honors listing.
Getting to know Tampa Bay
Hurst joined the Buccaneers’ rookie visit to MacDill Air Force Base on May 29, 2026. The club’s photographs identify him with the incoming players at the base. The visit brought part of his introduction to Tampa Bay beyond the practice field, giving the rookie class time together in another part of the local community. The completed MacDill visit.
On October 20, he took part in the Raise the Flags pep rally at Tampa Bay Boulevard Elementary School. Hurst appears throughout the team’s photographs of the rookie-club visit. The school event placed the players among local students during the season, adding another connection to the community where he had begun his professional career. Photographs from the school visit.
The next opportunity
Keep No. 17 in view
Hurst’s early story offers the Krewe a receiver to follow through the details: the timing of a throw, the chance to make a catch and the next adjustment that earns another opportunity. The first NFL touchdown provides a starting point. His development from here will shape the rest of that story.
Sources & record
Follow the original reporting
- Buccaneers current roster listing and 2026 media guide, p. 242.
- 2026 transaction ledger, the rookie-contract announcement and Mayfield’s August assessment.
- Minnesota gamebook and the first-touchdown highlight.
- Georgia State biography and academic honors and its draft announcement.
- Savannah-Chatham County school district recognition and WSAV’s family interview.
- The May MacDill visit and the October elementary-school rally.
NFL regular-season and college records are presented separately. Division II postseason games are already included in the corresponding college season totals.