Logan Jones
Photo by: Andrew Pedersen
Logan Jones Endures, Rises to Starting Role in Bobcat Backfield
8/30/2017 2:41:00 PM | Football
Bobcat junior responded to adversity to land RB honors entering opener
It was an innocent preseason camp conversation between an assistant football coach and a player on his team a few weeks ago, but for Logan Jones it represented so much more.
"As fall camp went along I rolled with the ones," Jones said, "and before the second scrimmage one of our coaches came up to me and was like, 'You're killing it right now, in my eyes you're the starter. You keep doing what you're doing and you'll be fine.' At that moment I had this opportunity in front of me, (so the question was,) am I going to waste it?"
A year ago, or two, Jones may have relaxed. The mercurial receiver-turned-running back may have had a laugh at his success and kicked his feet up. But he probably wouldn't have done what this year's version of Jones did.
"I said," in response to his self-posed hypothetical question, "'No.' I went into treatment, was down there (in the Athletic Training Room) getting my legs taken care of so I was fresh the next day, ice baths every day, getting my groin scraped out, whatever I could do to be successful I was doing. At that moment I thought, 'Alright, I have a chance here, let's not blow it.'"
Jones took advantage of his opportunity. MSU running backs coach Michael Pitre, Jones' position coach throughout his two-plus seasons as a Bobcat, has watched his pupil mature, and he sees the last month as a pivot point for the junior from Kalispell who enters Saturday's season opener at Washington State as the projected starting running back.
"I think the biggest thing is that he's matured," Pitre said, "and it's not even all football stuff. He's taken care of all the other aspects of his life. In return he's finally receiving the fruits of his labor from a football standpoint because he has focused and taken advantage of his opportunities, and taken care of his business."
Jones' first start for the Cats comes Saturday at Washington State, the 24th-ranked team in the nation and a legitimate championship contender in the Pac 12. His mindset entering that game exemplifies where he is in his football career, and his life.
"I'm trying to watch a ton of film," he said. "Not being surprised when I'm out there and I see a look, or I see they're in a certain front, or I see one of the 'backers roll over here, I know what they might be doing. I don't want to ever be caught by surprise. That's the football aspect of it, and in my life what I'm preparing for is I owning my own 20 square feet. I want to be able to know my assignment really well, I want to take good care of school this week so I'm not worried about it at all, so I can do my job and help the 10 other dudes on the field do theirs."
MSU offensive coordinator Brian Armstrong calls Jones "a slasher" who brings "good vision, good acceleration, start-and-stop" quickness to the backfield. Choate describes a back with "good short-area quickness, good straight-ahead speed" who "runs the outside zone well, can stick his foot in the ground and go."
A year ago, seeing Jones' name listed as a starter entering 2017 would have seemed unlikely. He spent most of that summer away from Bozeman, and was absent during the team's August preseason camp. He arrived when school began and rejoined the team, but he said "it was a terrible feeling" not to be part of the plan when the Cats opened the season.
Second-year Bobcat head coach Jeff Choate made Jones' status clear to the then-sophomore. "I don't think it's any mystery that he's a guy who wasn't in favor with the coaching staff after last summer and some things academically and some other things, and I think it's all about how he responded."
On the field, Jones' first how-do-you-do to Bobcat fans came at Portland State his freshman season, 2015, when he returned a kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown. "Gunnar (Brekke) got injured and Coach Pitre was always elaborating on the next man up mentality," Jones said, "so I was like, 'OK, it's my turn, let's go.' And it was weird, I felt it, like I was going to house it. When I get past the 30 or so (on kickoff returns) I can hear the crowd, and it's really fun."
Jones was an explosive return man at Glacier High School, which was a big part of the reason he played as a true freshman rather than redshirting, but learning the ropes on offense wasn't as easy. He transitioned from wide receiver to running back on the fly in his first weeks at MSU. Carrying the ball was enough of a challenge, but add pass blocking to the mix and the workload was heavy.
"I never learned much about having patience (in blocking), about high-hat/low-hat read, when a dude's going to bull rush you or not," Jones said, indicating that picking up the finer points of that skill continues. "I was working with Tucker Yates and Jake Sessions on pass pro the other morning. That's what those guys do is pass pro and pass rush, and what they're doing is going to help me too because I have to block the same dudes. I have actually grown tremendously in that area. I've been a lot more patient, I've been able to keep my hands nice and tight, work hands, that sort of thing. That's been my biggest area of growth."
That may be true in football terms, but Jones said his growth off the field has been even more important. "It took me a little bit longer than most to learn how to grow up," he said with a laugh. "Coming from high school and being able to play right away I didn't get that transition. I think a redshirt year would have been great for me but I didn't get that. But I've learned, and that's what it's all about."
Injuries have also proven an obstacle. A knee injury ended his freshman campaign, and a shoulder issue limited him a year ago. Jones has taken physical issues in stride. "At some point it's just football and that's the nature of the sport," he said. "When you play, something's going to happen to you eventually. I'm not afraid of an injury at all, not whatsoever. It's the nature of the game and I want to play. I love this sport."
Choate loves having Jones in the backfield, but he appreciates what his junior running back has endured to get to his current station. "He could have walked away" from football a year ago, Choate said. "Instead of saying 'I'm not going to do it anymore,' he's bowed his neck and said, 'I'm going to do it better.' So many people in society think if something is hard or slow it's bad, but usually it's the best way. I think Logan's figured that out, so I'm proud of him and his ability to work through that, and I think he's going to have a really good year. He's grown as a man, and I think it's going to benefit him far beyond football."
"As fall camp went along I rolled with the ones," Jones said, "and before the second scrimmage one of our coaches came up to me and was like, 'You're killing it right now, in my eyes you're the starter. You keep doing what you're doing and you'll be fine.' At that moment I had this opportunity in front of me, (so the question was,) am I going to waste it?"
A year ago, or two, Jones may have relaxed. The mercurial receiver-turned-running back may have had a laugh at his success and kicked his feet up. But he probably wouldn't have done what this year's version of Jones did.
"I said," in response to his self-posed hypothetical question, "'No.' I went into treatment, was down there (in the Athletic Training Room) getting my legs taken care of so I was fresh the next day, ice baths every day, getting my groin scraped out, whatever I could do to be successful I was doing. At that moment I thought, 'Alright, I have a chance here, let's not blow it.'"
Jones took advantage of his opportunity. MSU running backs coach Michael Pitre, Jones' position coach throughout his two-plus seasons as a Bobcat, has watched his pupil mature, and he sees the last month as a pivot point for the junior from Kalispell who enters Saturday's season opener at Washington State as the projected starting running back.
"I think the biggest thing is that he's matured," Pitre said, "and it's not even all football stuff. He's taken care of all the other aspects of his life. In return he's finally receiving the fruits of his labor from a football standpoint because he has focused and taken advantage of his opportunities, and taken care of his business."
Jones' first start for the Cats comes Saturday at Washington State, the 24th-ranked team in the nation and a legitimate championship contender in the Pac 12. His mindset entering that game exemplifies where he is in his football career, and his life.
"I'm trying to watch a ton of film," he said. "Not being surprised when I'm out there and I see a look, or I see they're in a certain front, or I see one of the 'backers roll over here, I know what they might be doing. I don't want to ever be caught by surprise. That's the football aspect of it, and in my life what I'm preparing for is I owning my own 20 square feet. I want to be able to know my assignment really well, I want to take good care of school this week so I'm not worried about it at all, so I can do my job and help the 10 other dudes on the field do theirs."
MSU offensive coordinator Brian Armstrong calls Jones "a slasher" who brings "good vision, good acceleration, start-and-stop" quickness to the backfield. Choate describes a back with "good short-area quickness, good straight-ahead speed" who "runs the outside zone well, can stick his foot in the ground and go."
A year ago, seeing Jones' name listed as a starter entering 2017 would have seemed unlikely. He spent most of that summer away from Bozeman, and was absent during the team's August preseason camp. He arrived when school began and rejoined the team, but he said "it was a terrible feeling" not to be part of the plan when the Cats opened the season.
Second-year Bobcat head coach Jeff Choate made Jones' status clear to the then-sophomore. "I don't think it's any mystery that he's a guy who wasn't in favor with the coaching staff after last summer and some things academically and some other things, and I think it's all about how he responded."
On the field, Jones' first how-do-you-do to Bobcat fans came at Portland State his freshman season, 2015, when he returned a kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown. "Gunnar (Brekke) got injured and Coach Pitre was always elaborating on the next man up mentality," Jones said, "so I was like, 'OK, it's my turn, let's go.' And it was weird, I felt it, like I was going to house it. When I get past the 30 or so (on kickoff returns) I can hear the crowd, and it's really fun."
Jones was an explosive return man at Glacier High School, which was a big part of the reason he played as a true freshman rather than redshirting, but learning the ropes on offense wasn't as easy. He transitioned from wide receiver to running back on the fly in his first weeks at MSU. Carrying the ball was enough of a challenge, but add pass blocking to the mix and the workload was heavy.
"I never learned much about having patience (in blocking), about high-hat/low-hat read, when a dude's going to bull rush you or not," Jones said, indicating that picking up the finer points of that skill continues. "I was working with Tucker Yates and Jake Sessions on pass pro the other morning. That's what those guys do is pass pro and pass rush, and what they're doing is going to help me too because I have to block the same dudes. I have actually grown tremendously in that area. I've been a lot more patient, I've been able to keep my hands nice and tight, work hands, that sort of thing. That's been my biggest area of growth."
That may be true in football terms, but Jones said his growth off the field has been even more important. "It took me a little bit longer than most to learn how to grow up," he said with a laugh. "Coming from high school and being able to play right away I didn't get that transition. I think a redshirt year would have been great for me but I didn't get that. But I've learned, and that's what it's all about."
Injuries have also proven an obstacle. A knee injury ended his freshman campaign, and a shoulder issue limited him a year ago. Jones has taken physical issues in stride. "At some point it's just football and that's the nature of the sport," he said. "When you play, something's going to happen to you eventually. I'm not afraid of an injury at all, not whatsoever. It's the nature of the game and I want to play. I love this sport."
Choate loves having Jones in the backfield, but he appreciates what his junior running back has endured to get to his current station. "He could have walked away" from football a year ago, Choate said. "Instead of saying 'I'm not going to do it anymore,' he's bowed his neck and said, 'I'm going to do it better.' So many people in society think if something is hard or slow it's bad, but usually it's the best way. I think Logan's figured that out, so I'm proud of him and his ability to work through that, and I think he's going to have a really good year. He's grown as a man, and I think it's going to benefit him far beyond football."
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