VIDEO: MSU Beat Writer Joel Coleman Talks About OL Brevyn Jones
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Illini Now/Sports Illustrated spoke to Starkville Daily News reporter Joel Coleman, who has covered Mississippi State for several years.
Coleman spoke specifically on the transfer of freshman offensive tackle Brevyn Jones to Illinois and put into context his transfer decision not necessarily helping the situation but also not being connected to Mike Leach’s now-deleted tweet of a meme of a woman knitting a noose for her husband during self-quarantine.
Lovie Smith’s Illini program received another verbal commitment from a former Power 5 Conference program player Thursday afternoon when Jones announced his pledge to Illinois on Twitter.
“Coaching staff showed me loved since day one checking up on me everyday just felt like family,” Jones said in confirming the news to Sports Illustrated. “Plus Illinois is on the come up and I want to be a part of it and it’s going to be nice to be in a different part of the country.”
Jones was reportedly contacted Florida State, Maryland, Oregon, Georgia Tech, Missouri, Houston and several high-profile programs after announcing his intention to enter the transfer portal.
Jones is an athletic offensive tackle prospect from the Birmingham, Ala., metro area and spent last season as a redshirt year with the MSU program after signing as a consensus three-star offensive tackle by 247Sports.com, Rivals.com and ESPN from Huffman High School after turning down scholarship offers from Tulane, Louisiana-Lafayette, Florida Atlantic and Appalachian State.
Jones, who was listed on MSU’s roster at 6-foot-4 and 280 pounds, has four remaining years of eligibility but may likely have to sit out the upcoming season due to still existing NCAA transfer rules.