NC WR impressed after Duke visit
It's been a trying year for Raleigh (N.C.) Southeast wide receiver Dante Jones. The two-star recruit has battled through knee and ankle injuries, but he's starting to hit his stride at just the right time.
Over the past three games Jones has averaged more than 100 yard receiving per game and even though he played most of the year banged up, he has nine receiving touchdowns.
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"Now I'm healthy, my ankle is good, my knee is good and I'm feeling good," Jones said of his performances over the last three weeks. "We had a lot of injuries this season so at one point I was playing outside linebacker and now I'm playing safety."
During his time on defense, Jones has racked up 47 tackles and four interceptions.
As of now, Jones has only one FBS offer, courtesy of Duke. FCS power Appalachian State has also offered. Jones said he's taken to his spot in the defensive backfield, and wouldn't mind if a college wanted him as a defensive back.
"It doesn't matter to me," he said. "I just want to play in college, I can play safety, corner or wide receiver."
Jones was on campus last month for Duke's historic win over North Carolina, a win that clinched bowl eligibility for the school for the first time in 1994.
"That was awesome," Jones said. "The best Duke game I've ever been to. That was the first time I've actually seen a Duke atmosphere with that type of feeling. It's usually quiet like a library, but that game was a like a college environment."
Jones said it really opened his eyes to the potential Duke has for the future.
"It really put things into perspective for me," he said. "Coach Cutcliffe is really pushing for football to be important at Duke now."
Jones said he'll wait until after the season to take his official visits, with the Blue Devils, the Mountaineers and Middle Tennessee at the top of his list.
"Right now I just want to finish my season as strong as possible," he said. "But the latest I want to decide would be the first of the year. After that my visits would just be to help me assure that I made the right decision. I don't want to be left out with schools filling up their classes."