Jones starts planning trips

The scholarship offers listed on Sam Jones' Rivals.com profile have been the same for some time. The list is comprised of Arizona State, Oregon State, Colorado State, Colorado and Wyoming. It has the same look now as it did in February. That's not say his recruitment is somehow stagnant, though.

New schools are getting involved and unofficial visits are being lined up. The Highlands Ranch (Colo.) ThunderRidge tackle is yet to nail down exact travel dates, but he has a plan. At this early juncture, that counts for something.

"I'm going to get up to Oregon and Oregon State sometime in April," Jones said. "I was thinking about getting to Nebraska and Oklahoma, too. I'm going to try to get some spring ball in there."

According to Jones, Oregon coaches say an offer will come during his visit to Eugene. Meanwhile, Oklahoma, which is also yet to offer, is a new face to Jones' recruitment. Newly hired Sooners offensive line coach Bill Bedenbaugh has started the process of building a relationship with the 275-pound prospect over the last couple weeks. Nebraska is kicking his tires as well.

That said, Jones is taking interest as it comes. He certainly isn't banking on new offers. His approach is simple: if they come, they come. If not, he'll live.

"I'm not expecting an offer from [Nebraska or Oklahoma] any time soon," Jones said. "I'm just kind of talking to them for right now. Other schools are sending me mail, but it's just kind of like junk mail, I guess. A lot of them aren't really recruiting me. They're just kind of letters -- the standard letters."

So, at least for now, the most pressing situations involve the two schools he plans to visit in the next month. Jones doesn't pretend to be an expert on Oregon or Oregon State. That's kind of the point of the trip, after all. It's all about gathering information.

"Obviously, Oregon is Oregon and everything," Jones said. "With Oregon State … my head coach played under some of their coaches when he was in college. So I've heard a lot of good things about the Oregon State staff."

As a junior, Jones helped ThunderRidge to an 11-2 overall record and an appearance in the Colorado 5A state semifinals.