Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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UNDER THE DOME Jarron Jones Working On Postseason Comeback Senior defensive lineman Jarron Jones isn't planning to be sidelined the entire 2015 season. The 6‑5½, 315‑pound Jones, who blossomed in the second half of the 2013 campaign and started all 11 games he was available for in 2014, was projected to team with classmate Sheldon Day to pro‑ vide the Fighting Irish a formi‑ dable inside duo along the 2015 defensive line. However, during practice Aug. 14, he incurred a third‑degree tear of the medial collateral ligament (MCL) in his right knee. Unlike an ACL tear, which gen‑ erally takes at least nine months of rehabilitation, Jones has pro‑ gressed to a point where there is a chance he might be available ei‑ ther for the bowl game, or one or two games in the four‑team Col‑ lege Football Playoff if the Irish are fortunate enough to make the field. "Jarron is now at that stage where it's building quad and hamstring strength," head coach Brian Kelly revealed Nov. 10. "We think that's going to take about anywhere from four to six weeks." That could activate him for practice by mid‑December. Where his strength and stamina would be at that point is uncertain, but every hand on deck would be valued along the line. Because he redshirted as a freshman in 2012, Jones' eligibility would not be affected by late‑season participation, and he would still be eligible to return for a fifth season in 2016. In Jones' place this year, freshman Jerry Tillery and sophomore Daniel Cage have been a tag‑team tandem. Through the first nine games, Tillery had 285 snaps to Cage's 242, with Cage recording 17 tackles (three for loss) and Tillery nine (two for loss). Jones, a defensive lineman who is eligible for a red- shirt fifth-year season in 2016, could still play in the postseason this year. PHOTO BY JOE RAYMOND