Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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16 NOV. 30, 2019 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY ANDREW MENTOCK I n Jamir Jones's first three seasons at Notre Dame, the 6-3, 255-pound defensive player accumulated 24 total tackles, with one stop behind the line of scrimmage. He began his Fighting Irish career as a linebacker before moving to the defensive line. Unlike his more heralded class- mates Julian Okwara, Khalid Kareem and Daelin Hayes, Jones was never thought of as a guaranteed contribu- tor coming into the 2019 season, and the expectations in the spring were that he would redshirt by participat- ing in four games or less. "There's not enough reps for every- body there," Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly said in the spring, refer- ring to Jones. "You'd even look at, can you redshirt somebody there? There are so many guys there (including yet another senior in Ade Ogundeji). "They're all going to want to com- pete, they're all going to want to play. It's going to be hard to get all those guys on the field. It's a great situation to have." At first, it was a tough pill for the then soon-to-be senior to swallow. There were teammates he'd been around for years he wouldn't be able to play alongside, and he'd be rel- egated to a scout team role in practice for the majority of the season. "It was sad at first just knowing that it's technically my senior year and that I would have to sit out and not be out there with all my broth- ers," Jones said. "And some of those guys, it would be my last time play- ing with them." This plan was coming to fruition early in the 2019 season. After three games, Jones saw ac- tion only against Georgia. This was going to benefit the team in 2020 and provide him with an extra year of development. "Coach was just telling me to stay ready," Jones said. "He knew that in- juries could be a possibility and that I would have to be ready to step in. It was something that I wanted for myself, too. "I knew that I still had to develop a lot more, so I wanted that extra year." The Notre Dame coaching staff was correct in telling him he needed to be ready because against Virginia Sept. 28, backup defensive end Dae- lin Hayes went down with a torn labrum and was lost for the season. Jones was immediately called upon to fill in. He finished the game with two tackles and a sack — the first of his career. With the opportunities of guaran- teed playing time, he produced three more sacks and five tackles for loss over the next four games. Still, he never allowed his unprecedented level of productivity go to his head. "I do a great job of listening to the coaches, doing whatever they ask me to do in the game plan," Jones said. "My teammates do a good job of do- ing their jobs, and you've got to make the plays when they come to you." Then against Duke Nov. 9, start- ing defensive end Julian Okwara fractured his fibula — and all of a sudden Jones went from a probable redshirt candidate to a starter, exem- plifying the mentality every coach preaches about staying ready to play. What's ironic is that Jones is now filling in for one of his best friends and roommates. While Okwara is upset about the injury, that hasn't stopped him from being supportive of Jones and his new role. "He's just telling me that it's my turn now," Jones said of Okwara. "It's my time and that he's going to be with me every step of the way." It's safe to say it's been a whirlwind of emotions for Jones who's gone from senior redshirt candidate to backup to starter in less than two months. But for as much as he appreciates the oppor- tunity to start, there's also part of him that would like to have redshirted and received the opportunity to develop for another season, which could help his professional aspirations. This isn't the first time he's made such a decision for the betterment of his team. In his junior year of high school at Rochester (N.Y.) Aquinas Institute, the starting quarterback on his football team went down with a season-ending injury. "I had to step in and play quarter- back, and at first I'm thinking, 'Oh yeah, I'll do it.' Then [my coach] told me that I couldn't play any more de- fense," Jones said. "I was like, 'Wow.' I hesitated a little bit, but it was something that was best for the team. "I accepted the [decision], and it was definitely hard because I knew that wouldn't help my future much because no one's going to recruit me to play quarterback, but that's some- thing I had to do for the team." He's not sure Notre Dame would have pursued him if the Irish coach- ing staff hadn't received the oppor- tunity to know him while they were recruiting his older brother, Jarron. But he still had to prove himself by showing up on campus and working out with the coaches. Without the extra year of develop- ment that he was hoping for earlier in the season, he may have to work extra hard to prove himself to NFL scouts if he decides to go that route. He recently accepted an invite to the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl, which is a post-season all-star game for draft- eligible college players. But no mat- ter what happens, he's at peace with his decision to fill in for his injured teammate and help his team win. "Team comes first in everything," Jones said. "You've got to do what it takes to win. In the end, winning is what matters; it's what makes this so much fun. If we were losing, it wouldn't be fun. "You just gotta do whatever it takes to win games, whether it's be- ing on the sideline redshirting, or being out there and playing any role that they ask me to do, and I'm going to do it." ✦ THE REPLACEMENT In six weeks, Jamir Jones has gone from redshirt candidate to starter Heading into the final two weeks of the regular season, Jones had played in eight games and contributed 17 tackles, six tackles for loss and the first four sacks of his Irish career. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA