JUCO DE commit Jaden Jones enjoys OV, ready to arrive at Florida State
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Florida State is bringing in a talented defensive front as one of the main features in #Tribe23. A prospect with as much potential as anyone is the long and rangy Jaden Jones - who took his official visit to Tallahassee over the weekend.
READ MORE: Seminoles a potential fit for four-star safety Isaac Smith
Jones was one of three official visitors on campus to witness Florida State defeat Florida in the regular season finale. Prior to departing on Sunday, he recapped the experience with reporters.
“First of all, I just wanted to say shout out to all the coaches that brought me out here and just showed love to me in the Florida State family," Jones said to NoleGameday's Dustin Lewis. "I appreciate y'all staying out here. I just wanna say I'm very proud of being a Seminole. You know, I'll be here January 6th, so I'm just ready to get it started. It was a real great experience. Very loving, caring, people were open, great experience on Friday with the game, came out with that. So, yeah, it was just very heartfelt."
The Alabama native only took one trip to FSU before committing over the summer. This was his first opportunity to see a game in person and the experience lived up to the hype.
“For me, I came in the summer when it was off campus," Jones said. "So school was out, I think. So for me, this time, I saw the facilities and stuff, so this time I wanted to see how the people were, like the environment, how the love was gonna be. So they did a great job doing that.”
“It was crazy. I never experienced nothing like that," Jones continued. "Like I've been to Alabama, Auburn, I've been to game days there, and it was nothing like that, it was a different atmosphere. So it was definitely crazy.”
Once the Seminoles finished off the Gators in the fourth quarter, Jones and other recruits went into the locker room. They got to witness head coach Mike Norvell's postgame speech and see the rock get broken.
“So after the game, we went in the locker room," Jones said. "They just came in like one by one. It was real like brotherhood. They were hugging each other. It was love. Everybody in the locker room, you could feel it like it was real. Coach Norvell came in with the energy. I don't know, It's like a family, it's really family.”
The defensive ends have performed admirably throughout the season. Jared Verse and Derrick McClendon both recorded five tackles and half a tackle for loss against Florida. Redshirt freshman Patrick Payton is one of the nominees for ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year. The level of success has stood out to him.
“They've been doing good. I talked with a couple of them, Pat Payton after the game and stuff," Jones said. "They all, you know, learn from each other, and hopefully I can do the same thing, learn from those guys, all learn from each other and grow together. I have been seeing [Jared] Verse doing good, so I have definitely been paying attention to him a lot. He was a really good player, so him and [Derrick] McClendon. Yeah, I watch those two a lot."
One of his favorite parts of the visit was getting a chance to check out Champions Hall - the dorm where he'll eventually reside in Tallahassee. Outside of Payton, he spent a lot of time getting to know a trio of true freshmen on the defensive line; Antavious Woody, Dante Anderson, and Bishop Thomas.
“I still got a lot to see out here," Jones said. "It's a lot to see out here, but probably going over to Champions Hall, the dorms, seeing where I'll be staying at in a few months. But, you know, all the players live over there, so I met a couple of them over there. So it was, it was a real fun time over there.”
The Seminoles have a plan for how they eventually want to use Jones in their defensive end rotation. Coach John Papuchis broke it down for him.
“They basically have a three-down defensive end set," Jones said. "They like to swap them in and out. They like to rotate. I think JP said they like to do, like last year they did like 35 plays each for two rotations as an end set. So that's pretty much what he said about that.”
The Hutchinson Community College product also met with Director of Strength and Conditioning, Josh Storms. The mainstay under Norvell and crucial aspect of the development of the program had a presentation ready for him. Running back Trey Benson tore his ACL and other ligaments less than two years ago and is in the tail end of a career year.
Storms showed Jones before and after pictures of Benson since he's arrived at Florida State. The plan is for Jones to eventually add 20+ pounds to his frame, which still has ample room to add good weight.
“He [Josh Storms] did a little presentation with me yesterday. So it was him and the whole staff," Jones said. "We were just going over stuff and we was talking about me coming off an injury too and he was just showing me pictures before and after because Trey Benson came off injury with the ACL too. And he did a real good job with that, him and the staff. So it just was impressive. He was fired about me coming in, putting some weight on.”
Prior to the conclusion of his visit on Sunday afternoon, Jones sat down for a meeting with head coach Mike Norvell in his office. The message was simple and well received by both parties.
“It was real good," Jones said. "He was opening up with just being a people person, letting me know that he got me and I got him. As long as he got me, I got him. That's all. That's it. Real good."
It's been about ten weeks since Jones had ACL surgery for an injury that he suffered in the second game of the season. He'll be limited in the spring but is on track to be fully cleared for contact before fall camp.
“In springtime, I'll be non-contact, so I'll be doing a lot of drills and stuff," Jones said. "But full contact, I'll be good for June right before camp, so I'd be good to go right before the season.”
At this stage, Jones isn't communicating with or planning to visit other schools. He says that he's "locked in" with Florida State and will arrive in Tallahassee on January 6.
The 6-foot-5, 232-pound defensive end is regarded as the No. 4 JUCO prospect, the No. 1 JUCO DL, and the No. 3 JUCO recruit from the state of Alabama in the 2023 class. Jones is expected to have four years of eligibility remaining.
Florida State's 2023 class currently holds 16 verbal commitments and is regarded as the No. 17 haul in the country.
READ MORE: Florida State flips four-star quarterback Brock Glenn from Ohio State
Stick with NoleGameday for more coverage of Florida State football throughout the season.
