Miami Commitment Artavius Jones: Practice Notes and Recruiting Update
The Miami Hurricanes No. 1 recruiting priority would be defensive tackle. That’s why already having the commitment of Artavius Jones is important.
Coming from Blountstown (Fla.) High School – roughly 45 minutes southwest of Tallahassee – does not help Jones gain exposure, but he’s a big-time talent.
Once a person watches Jones’s junior film, it’s easy to see why so many schools are offering the defensive tackle. Kentucky, Florida State, LSU, Oklahoma, Michigan State, Oregon, Tennessee and Wisconsin are a part of a wide variety of schools that are making overtures to Jones.
For a young man at 6-foot-3 and 310 pounds, Jones showcases excellent lateral quickness. He also hits with power, relishes contact, and possesses the foot speed to chase down players much smaller than himself.
Watching Jones run just a few yards away, he’s a fluid athlete despite the size. That’s also unusual. Players at that size usually struggle to move with fluidity. Jones does not struggle one bit. There’s another way to look at Jones.
Blountstown head coach Greg Jordan made a great point during Monday’s practice. This following statement is a testament to the overall frame Jones is blessed with.
“If he (Jones) were to walk out with the Tampa Bay (Buccaneers) practice field, he’d fit right in.”
While Jordan did not mean Jones is already an NFL player, the point about Jones already possessing an NFL-like body is one that catches a person’s attention. Coach Jordan’s statement came unsolicited as well.
It’s also a true statement. You cannot teach the natural size that Jones possesses, especially from the hips and lower body; that’s natural power.
Asking him about recruiting and which schools are still coming for him, the first school should not surprise anyone. That’s Florida State, the school right up the road from Blountstown.
“They’re coming real hard,” Jones admitted. He was still rocking the Miami gloves and giving his teammate a hard time about the upcoming Miami versus Texas A&M game though.
Jordan Pride is one of the nation’s top safety recruits and he’s an Aggies commitment. They were jawing back and forth about the game on Sep. 9 at Hard Rock Stadium.
“We’re going to see,” Jones said with a smile and a laugh. “It’s Year 2 for Cristobal. We’re going to see.”
Jones plans to head down to Coral Gables for the Texas A&M game. There’s still FSU that’s after him, and Colorado is calling as well. He seems pretty locked in with The U, however.
That’s good news for Canes fans because Jones is the body type and level of athlete Miami needs at defensive tackle to get back to national prominence.
Now, a few extra nuggets that came from being at the Blountstown practice.
“We will toss him the football,” Jordan said about playing Jones on offense. Yes, he meant playing the big man in the backfield.
Keep in mind, he’s in the 1A Rural division. Good luck to those young men that will be attempting to slow him down. A couple of final thoughts about Jones overall.
He’s a gregarious personality and one that people will gravitate towards. He likes to joke around and enjoy his teammates. Just an all-around good dude.
Jones is a natural defensive tackle with exceptional skills. Miami has at least one much needed defensive tackle recruit for its 2024 recruiting class. It would do well to land another player with Jones’ overall skills.
Additional note: Blountstown has Ashton Mosley, a USF commitment at outside linebacker, and there's uncommitted linebacker Amarion Hover as well. Both of those young men are natural athletes that are put together! For a 1A football team, having four college football players, in one graduating class, is extrodinary.
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Fan Nation High school football recruiting analyst covering the state of Florida, as well as across the Southeastern United States and the state of Texas.