Transfer Talk: What Oklahoma is Getting in DE Marvin Jones Jr.

A former 5-star prospect, Marvin Jones Jr. hasn't produced like many experts expected at the collegiate level yet.
Marvin Jones Jr. at Florida State
Marvin Jones Jr. at Florida State / Ehsan Kassim/Tallahassee Democrat / USA TODAY NETWORK
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Oklahoma is starting over on offense in 2025, and the Sooners have some holes to plug on defense and special teams as well.

So Brent Venables and the OU staff landed another impactful haul out of the NCAA Transfer Portal for 2025 — 14 players so far, with the possibility of more still to come.

This series continues Sooners On SI’s inside look at what OU is getting out of the portal for next season. Next up: defensive end Marvin Jones Jr..


Marvin Jones Jr. came into college with high expectations, but so far, those haven’t panned out.

Jones, a former 5-star recruit, is headed to Oklahoma after stops at Georgia and Florida State. The 2025 season will be his fourth year of college football after two seasons in Athens and one in Tallahassee.

In his lone season with the Seminoles, Jones was one of FSU’s better defenders.

He ended the 2024 season with 25 tackles, six tackles for loss, four sacks and forced a fumble. Jones tied for the team lead in sacks and was third in tackles for loss.

Still, those who covered Jones and the Seminoles expected more from him.

“Marvin Jones Jr. is someone that FSU expected to take the next step in development but sadly didn’t see that happen,” said Logan Robinson, founder and owner of NoleGameDay SI. “The body and frame is there but the effort on the field and impact was a major letdown on the defensive side of the ball for the Seminoles.”

Jones, a 6-foot-5, 255-pound edge rusher, came to FSU after two seasons in Athens. For the Bulldogs, Jones notched 16 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss and two sacks.

Jones is one of only two defensive players from the transfer portal that have announced their intentions to join the Sooners, along with former Oklahoma State linebacker/safety Kendal Daniels.


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247 Sports graded Jones as the No. 12 edge rusher in the 2025 transfer portal class, and he’s a consensus 4-star transfer.

Even with his lack of production at Georgia and Florida State, Jones’ stature stands out.

“Everything is there with what you like size-wise,” Robinson said. “Good team player and respected in the locker room.”

The Seminoles are coming off a season where they went 2-10 after finishing 12-1 in 2023. Just about every facet of their squad didn’t produce, and the defensive line was no exception.

“It was a year of inconsistency and ups and downs,” Tallahassee Democrat reporter Liam Rooney said about Jones and his FSU squad.

Out of high school, Jones was a star.

Every national recruiting site had Jones listed as a 5-star prospect in the Class of 2022, and 247 Sports ranked him as the No. 1 edge rusher in the class. In his senior year of high school, Jones recorded 46 tackles, six tackles for loss and five sacks.

Jones is the son of Marvin Jones Sr., who was a legend at Florida State.

Jones Sr., a linebacker, won the Butkus Award and the Lombardi Award while playing for the Seminoles. He spent 10 years in the NFL with the New York Jets before transitioning to coaching.

Jones Sr. is currently the head coach of the Tulsa Oilers in the Indoor Football League.

Ira Schoffel, a reporter for the site Warchant that covers FSU athletics, believes his family history gives the impression that Jones Jr. was more disappointing for the Seminoles than he actually was.

“That hype was compounded by the fact that his father, Marvin Jones Sr., is not only one of the best players in Florida State history, but one of the best college linebackers to ever play the game,” Schoffel said. “His expectations were through the roof. And I was as guilty of it as anyone based on what he looks like physically — there just aren't many human beings who are built like he is and can move as well as he does. But all of that physical ability just didn't materialize into production.”

Even after three up-and-down seasons at two major programs, Jones’ physical attributes make him a player that could excel for OU’s defense.

“From everything I saw and heard,” Schoffel said. “Marvin worked really hard at trying to get better. He wanted to be great. It just hasn't happened for him yet.”


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Rooney added, “He can be very quick off the line and he has got a natural strength that impresses. If he can find a patch of consistency, he could be a fun watch.”

Jones adds size and skill to a defense that has plenty of experience.

The Sooners bring back sacks leader and All-SEC defensive end R Mason Thomas, big-play defensive linemen Damonic Williams, Jayden Jackson and Gracen Halton, playmaking linebacker Kip Lewis, cornerbacks Eli Bowen and Gentry Williams, starting safeties Peyton Bowen and Robert Spears-Jennings and cheetah linebacker Kendal Dolby while also adding Oklahoma State hybrid Kendal Daniels as well as returning 5-star defensive linemen P.J. Adebawore and David Stone.

OU loses consensus All-American linebacker Danny Stutsman, All-SEC safety Billy Bowman, starting defensive end Ethan Downs and starting defensive tackle Da’Jon Terry.

The Sooners are also on the hunt for a new defensive coordinator after Zac Alley, the 2024 coordinator, departed for West Virginia in December. OU reportedly targeted Ohio State defensive coordinator Jim Knowles, the former DC at Oklahoma State, but Knowles decided to join the staff at Penn State instead.

Jones will likely pair with Thomas at defensive end. Thomas was an All-SEC second team selection in 2024, recording 11.5 tackles for loss, nine sacks and 11 quarterback hurries.

Even though Jones hasn’t tapped into his full potential collegiately yet, that duo could be deadly for the Sooners.

“He did have a few moments where he flashed his potential (at Florida State),” Rooney said. “I’d say Marvin’s best attribute is his raw athleticism.”

Schoffel added, “In his defense, I think the whole team lost confidence early in the season and began to regress. So it's kind of hard to judge how he might have done if the team was playing well. I'm sure the team's struggles weighed on all the players.”


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Carson Field
CARSON FIELD

Carson Field has worked full-time in the sports media industry since 2020 in Colorado, Texas and Wyoming as well as nationally, and he has earned degrees from Arizona State University and Texas A&M University. When he isn’t covering the Sooners, he’s likely golfing, fishing or doing something else outdoors. Twitter: https://x.com/carsondfield