Biography

BIOGRAPHY

Jaelan Phillips was born May 28, 1999, in Redlands, California. He attended Redlands East Valley High School, where he finished with 264 tackles, 31.5 sacks, 3 forced fumbles and 3 interceptions. Considered the top high school football prospect from the class of 2017, he received over 20 scholarship offers before committing to UCLA. As a true freshman in 2017, Phillips played in seven games and recorded 21 tackles (seven for loss), 2 pass deflections, and 3.5 sacks. As a sophomore in 2018, he played in four games before a concussion ended his season. After several other injuries, including being hit by a car while riding a moped, Phillips medically retired from football in December 2017 and enrolled at the Los Angeles City College to study music production.

In 2019, Phillips transferred to the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami with the intent to play football for the Hurricanes. He would sit out of the 2019 season due to NCAA transfer rules but would start in 2020, where he finished with 45 tackles, 8 sacks, and an interception. He was named a second-team All-American and All-ACC and was considered a finalist for the Chuck Bednarik Award. He chose to forego his remaining collegiate eligibility and entered the 2021 NFL Draft.

Phillips would later be drafted by the Dolphins in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft.