Auburn stays hot in Georgia, lands four-star OL Keiondre Jones
Auburn now has 13 commitments in the 2019 class and six of them have come from prospects in Georgia.
Jakai Clark, Tyler Fromm, Owen Pappoe, Jashawn Sheffield and Jaylin Simpson are Peach State prospects that committed to the Tigers earlier this year and Keiondre Jones is the latest to pledge to Gus Malzahn. The Rivals250 offensive lineman out of Hoganville (Ga.) Callaway chose the Tigers over Florida and Mississippi State.
IN HIS OWN WORDS
"It actually wasn’t long ago — maybe a couple weeks that I had a feeling that Auburn was the right school for me," said Jones. "Everything kind of fell in place for me to choose Auburn after that.
"It feels like home and Auburn was close to the top of my list for a very long time. Then, I just kind of got a feeling that it was the place for me. I was torn between all three schools for a long time — for months, especially after all three official visits.
"The family feel played a huge part in why I chose Auburn. They also have a need at my position and I have the chance to compete, so that is another thing I like. It’s really the home school for me because it’s right down the road.
"The push they made recently helped a lot. I used to feel like they were too close to home, but now it’s more of a plus than a negative. My official there really shook everything up. When I really got around the program and experienced the family aspect. That was important.
"Coach Grimes (offensive line) is my guy. He reminds me of like a grandfather type and I feel like he genuinely cares about his players. I know how hard I’ll go for somebody that I feel that with.
"The coaches were really shocked and excited when I committed and the hugs they gave me were so genuine. I could really feel like that was the place for me. I’m happy to be blessed with the opportunity to get a great education, be around great people, play in front of great fans, get great coaching and play big time ball right down the road.
"I’m extremely happy with my decision."
RIVALS REACTION
Jones is one of those recruits that started being evaluated at a very young age. The more you see a kid sometimes, the tougher you are on them as an analyst. He was big at a young age and had good mobility, so he stood out early. He has played a lot of tackle in high school, but he is a guard all the way in college and he looks like he will be a very good one. He had an outstanding performance at the Rivals 100 Five-Star Challenge a few weeks ago and he went up against some of the best in the country. He has a great base, he anchors well and he is very strong. He is more athletic than most expect him to be too.
