Duke Offers Top JUCO Defensive Tackle Jalen Williams
Duke’s pursuit of defensive line help has taken the Blue Devils coaches to a relatively untapped area: the junior college level.
While Duke’s stringent academic requirements often keep the Blue Devils from being able to pursue JUCO players, that’s not always the case, and defensive tackle Jalen Williams is the latest JUCO player to lure Duke’s staff to a two-year school.
Williams is a 6-foot-3, 310-pound three-star in the class of 2021. He had 28 tackles, four tackles for loss, a sack and two quarterback hurries last season for Tylertown, Mississippi’s Jones County Junior College.
He’s the No. 9 JUCO player in the class, according to 247Sports, including the top-rated defensive tackle and No. 4 player in the state of Mississippi.
Williams has picked up offers from Power Five schools Florida State, Ole Miss, Arkansas, Auburn and Baylor, in addition to Duke.
Williams has gained 20 pounds—and plenty of college interest—since his senior year in high school, when he opted for Jones County after being recruited by Colorado—high only FBS offer at the time. Williams topped 100 tackles each of his last two years of high school.
At Jones, he’s earned honors on the field and in the classroom. He was named to the school’s academic honor roll in the spring, after being named second-team all-conference following the season. He’s already been named to the preseason conference watch list heading into his sophomore year.
Duke currently has one defensive line commitment in its 2021 class—end Aaron Hall. Duke has offered approximately 15 tackle prospects in the class and more than two dozen ends.
