Jones trying a different kind of one-and-done
By Michael Doti
MDJ Sports Writer
Zamir Jones is a senior,
but despite only having one
year left at Pebblebrook,
it isn’t deterring him from
trying a new sport.
Jones said he didn’t play
any team sport until his freshman
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year of high school. For
him, it started when his older
cousins told him to try playing
basketball. Once he started he
enjoyed it.
Jones said he was supposed
to start playing football last
year, but his father pulled
him off the team because of
the COVID-19 pandemic, and
the fear of getting his grandmother
sick.
Now, t h e 6 - f o o t - 4 ,
240-pound offensive lineman
will finally get his chance.
He said the reason he decided
to give football a try was
because the training process
was similar to basketball.
“I would say football is a little
bit more physical and it takes
a lot more hardcore training,”
Jones said. “Basketball is also
similar because of the running
and the amount of hard work
you have to put into it, so it’s
similar like that.”
On the basketball court,
Jones played power forward.
There are a handful of NFL
players that played the position
in college before they
switched to football, including
some of the top tight ends in
NFL history like Tony Gonzalez,
Antonio Gates and one
of Jones’ biggest role models,
Jimmy Graham.
“(Graham) was one of my
big inspirations when I was
growing up,” Jones said. “I
just liked how he went up
for the aggressive catch and
his route running. He was
a really big role model in
that way.”
When Jones first joined the
football team, he was a tight
end like Graham. However,
coach Leroy Hood decided
he would be better off as an
offensive lineman. Hood said
Jones did not hesitate to switch
positions. It is selfless acts
like that why Hood has high
hopes for him.
“We feel like he’s going
to be a tremendous asset to
the team. Everyday the guy
shows up for workouts on
time, does everything 100%,
and we wish we could have
gotten him last year, but because
of COVID he wasn’t
able to play,” he said. “Just
given what we’ve seen as far
as in the spring and summer
we definitely feel like
he’s going to be a tremendous
piece for us on the offensive
line.”
Although Jones isn’t expected
to catch any passes this
season, there is another figure
in his life that played the
same position he does at the
collegiate level.
His father played offensive
tackle at Louisville, and Jones
said he has helped him with
his training.
“He helped me a lot. We did
some training over the summer
and he made me try to
keep myself in shape so that
when the time comes for us
to start playing, I’ll be ready,”
Jones said.
Despite this being his first
season on the team, Jones said
he wants to help his team win
any way possible.
He said he’ll do this by playing
his role to the best of his
abilities. Hood said Jones
will start on the offensive
line this season so he will
get his shot.
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