This Guy Plays Notre Dame Football: #80 Micah Jones

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish have a roster full of players, and we want to talk about them. One Foot Down’s player profile series will take a look at every single one of them, and hopefully we all learn a little bit more about these guys, and Notre Dame’s chances for the upcoming 2018 season.

#80 Micah Jones

Next up is the early enrollee Freshman from Gurnee, IL, Micah Jones. Jones was a 4 Star Recruit out of Warren High School. He stands at just under 6’5 and weighs around 210/215, but looks to add on more bulk with a full year under Matt Balis. With everything said, he absolutely looks like he is ready to play now, but with the speed and experience of the receivers currently on the roster, he may have to wait at least another year. The thing that should excite fans most about him is his ability to go up and get the ball, which is highlighted by his incredible hand strength at the highpoint of the throw.

3 Things About Micah Jones

1. Micah was ranked as the 36th best receiver in the nation, and the 5th best player to come out of IL.
2. He finished his senior season with 53 catches, scoring on 12 of them (impressive ratio).
3. He is incredibly articulate, and seems to be a guy who has wanted to go to Notre Dame since he was a kid. He mentions this in an interview below:

Youtube Hot Fire

The thing that stands out is his hand strength. It is clear the he is going up and getting the ball, and winning every 50/50 ball. This is critical for the quarterbacks to have a security blanket target like this and something that has been lacking as of late amongst the receivers. There is a bit of Michael Floyd in the way he goes up and attacks the ball, as seen on the first play of his tape.

Bonus Michael Floyd Freshman Highlight, also Jimmy Clausen....sup

Country, Condiment, or Canon

Identifying the player as either a country, condiment, or member of the Star Wars Canon.

Fiji

I say Fiji because he is the type of guy who you want to be covered up one on one when corners are out “On an Island”. Additionally, this is always a place I have dreamed of visiting, but could not point out on a map. He has the ability to beat man coverage, not necessarily because of speed, but because of body position and his ability high point the ball.

2018 Forecast

I think we will have an idea the type of role Micah will play this year early in camp. He flew under the radar in the Spring, but this is not surprising for early enrollee players. He will head into camp with some more experience as well as some more time in the weight room. However, I think he will most likely not crack the rotation this year, again due to the guys ahead of him including Miles Boykin and Chase Claypool. I do think there is a chance he may see some action, along with other Freshman receiver Kevin Austin, in early games such as Ball State. With the new Red Shirt rule, there is no harm in getting some of the young guns experience early. Look for Micah to play in 1 or 2 games this year, hopefully with the opportunity of getting a jump ball, as he will come down with it. This is definitely a name to remember, but maybe just not yet.