Stafford players split on Bears’ future
Jones decommits from Baylor amid scandal, while Pitre still on board for Waco
Baylor’s firing of football coach Art Briles sent shock waves through the college football world last week. Two seniors at Stafford are dealing with it in different ways.
Four-star wide receiver Hezekiah Jones had been verbally committed to Baylor since June 2015 before backing off that pledge in the days following Briles’ dismissal.
Three-star defensive back Jalen Pitre remains committed to Baylor.
“The education hasn’t changed,” Pitre said. “My coach is still there. Coach Briles is a big part, but I didn’t feel like he was the whole reason I committed in the first place.”
Briles built a high octane passing offense at Baylor so it is likely not surprising that Jones opted to rescind his commitment. Jones said Monday afternoon that his decision was based solely on the questions that surround the offense no that Briles is gone.
Jones added that he still is interested in Baylor, but he will reopen his search. If he picks Baylor again he said it will not be until he sees what things look like when everything settles down and how the Bears do on the field this fall.
He has more than 25 scholarship offers from many of the best teams in the NCAA such as Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Oklahoma and Oregon. He said no schools jump out right away.
“(Recruiting) just started to pick up again,” Jones said. “It’s really the same, but more (schools) are starting to come in. I haven’t set up any recruiting visits yet. (This summer) will probably consist of a lot more visits than what it was going to.”
Recruiting will not be the only thing on Jones’ mind this summer. In addition to several national camps, he will be with his Stafford teammates as they prepare for the state 7-on-7 tournament in College Station in early July.
The Spartans qualified for the second time in three years when they won the Navasota qualifying tournament on May 21.
After that they will turn their focus to the 2016 fall season in which Stafford will have perhaps its greatest expectations in the history of the school.
The Spartans are 28-7 the last three years under coach Ron Counter with second-round playoff exits each time. Last year they won a district title during their 11-1 season.
Jones said the team will not necessarily have their sights set on getting past the second round. Instead, the Spartans will narrow their focus to their daily work.
“We are not going to think ahead,” Jones said. “We’re going to stay focused on the mission we have each week. We have a new quarterback (Walter White) on varsity this year so we have to take him under our wing and show him the ropes. Overall we’re going to work hard this summer and grind every day.”