No. 2 JUCO SDE Jacoby Jones signs with Texas

Head coach Tom Herman bolstered his 2019 Texas Longhorns recruiting class by officially adding Butler CC defensive end Jacoby Jones, who signed his National Letter of Intent on Wednesday morning, cementing a major recruiting victory over Oklahoma after Jones flipped on the Sooners in November.

Jones, a three-star talent who is ranked as the No. 23 junior college prospect and the No. 2 strong-side defensive end, according to the 247 Sports Composite rankings, will have two years of eligibility when he arrives on the Forty Acres in January.

With the addition of Jones, the Longhorns will have a viable replacement option and added depth at a position where Texas will need someone to fill holes on the defensive line. Jones will be among a handful of defensive lineman who could potentially replace departing senior defensive ends Charles Omenihu, who tallied 16 tackles for loss and 9.5 sacks during the 2018 regular season, and Breckyn Hager, who compiled 31 tackles, 7.5 of those for loss, and 2.5 sacks.

In nine games this season, Jones recorded 21 total tackles, 16 of which were solo, and 3.5 sacks.

The 6’4, 250-pounder took an initial visit to Texas in May of 2018, but later committed to Oklahoma close to the start of the regular season. But despite the commitment to the Sooners seemingly eliminating the Longhorns from the mix, Texas defensive line coach Oscar Giles, who recruited Jones, continued pressing until the Horns were able to get Jones back to Austin for a second visit in November when Texas hosted Iowa State. Jones flipped his commitment to Texas just a days later with a verbal on Nov. 21, throwing him into Herman’s #fUTure19 class.

Jones received interest from 18 schools, with 17 of those programs offering scholarships, according to 247 Sports. Other schools that were in the mix for the JUCO talent included Washington State, Colorado, Oregon and N.C. State. Jones was also offered by a handful of Big 12 programs — in addition to the Sooners and Longhorns, Jones received scholarship offers from Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, TCU and Iowa State.

Currently on the Texas roster are five defensive ends if you include occasional B-backer Malcolm Roach, who missed nearly two months with a broken foot and then played defensive end upon his return.

Jones will join weak side defensive end Peter Mpagi, fellow strong side defensive ends T’Vondre Sweat and Myron Warren in the 2019 #fUTure19 class.