Offers are starting to roll in for Jeff Jones, one of the most coveted recruits in the upper Midwest. Jones is a 6', 194-lb. running back out of Minneapolis' Washburn High School. Jones ran for 1,415 yards and 26 touchdowns as a sophomore. His junior production dipped slightly, but he still managed 1,002 yards and nine scores. Highlights from his sophomore season are available courtesy of Hudl.
Jeff Jones recruit scouting report: Balanced running back
Minnesota-based running back’s recruitment heating up
Student Sports
Jones is a consensus four-star recruit, with four-star ratings from 24/7, Rivals, and Scout. ESPN is the only outlier, giving Jones three stars. Both 24/7 and Rivals ranks Jones as the #11 running back in the 2014 class. Scout also puts him in the top 15 backs in this year’s class.
As of May, he holds an offer from the hometown Minnesota Gophers, as well as offers from Michigan State, Wisconsin, Iowa, Iowa State, Illinois, Kentucky, and Syracuse.
Bud Elliott, National Recruiting Analyst: Jones is one of my favorite backs in the class. He has some small-back skills in the frame of a back who can eventually play north of 200 pounds.
Jones has good, but not great speed. He won’t be caught by many in the open field, but doesn’t have that track-style burst that some have. He does, however, have good quickness and hits the hole fast and aggressively.
Jones does not have many moves in the open field, but importantly, he seems to realize that he is limited in that area, and does not mess around trying to dance too much. He makes a cut and gets north and south quickly.
The thing that most impresses me about Jones is his ability to remain balanced and not lose too much speed when turning the corner. This shows up on his highlight tape and in person, and I still remember a great play he made displaying this skill at the Chicago regional event.
I would like to see Jones lower his shoulder more and not run so upright between the tackles, which at times seems to be an issue.
Jones also catches the ball quite well.
