Mac Jones

Mac Jones (born Michael McCorkle Jones) is an American football quarterback for the Alabama Crimson Tide from Jacksonville, Florida.

Early years

Mac Jones was born September 5, 1998 to parents Gordon and Holly Jones. His father played tennis at Florida State University and Flagler College his senior year. Jones led Flagler to the NAIA national championship in 1977.and then played professionally throughout the United States. His love of sports was passed on to Mac and his two siblings, both of whom played collegiate sports. Mac's brother, Will, played soccer at Mercer University while his sister Sarah Jane played tennis for the College of Charleston. At the age of 5, Jones signed up for his first Pop Warner football team, which spawned a love of football. While he played other sports, his favorite was clear and from the time he was five years old, his mother would find him drawing out football plays. Jones received Pop Warner Scholar recognition in his youth and as he approached middle school, Coach Joe Dickinson began mentoring Mac to become an elite quarterback. In a 2014 interview, Dickinson said "Mac Jones is one of, if not the purest passer I have ever been around…There is a big future for him."

Career

Jones played his high school football at The Bolles School where he was coached by Corky Rogers. After originally committing to the University of Kentucky, Jones accepted a scholarship offer from Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban and signed with the University of Alabama. Jones arrived in Tuscaloosa as an early enrollee, but redshirted his freshman season in 2017. Jones, according to Saban, continued to gain confidence and improve mechanics since his performance in the 2018 A-Day game. After throwing for 289 yards and two touchdowns in the Crimson Tide's spring game, Jones was named A-Day MVP.

In the 2018 season, Jones appeared in 14 of the Crimson Tide's 15 games, mostly as a holder on special teams. Jones added his name to the Alabama record book with a 94-yard touchdown pass to Jaylen Waddle, the second-longest in school history, in a win against Louisiana-Lafayette.

Jones served as the starting QB in the second half of the 2019 season after Tua Tagovailoa suffered a season-ending hip injury. Jones made four starts for the Tide, beating Arkansas and Western Carolina before falling to Auburn in the Iron Bowl despite throwing for four touchdowns and 335 yards. Jones then led Alabama to a 35-16 win over Michigan in the Citrus Bowl. Jones finished 2019 with 14 TD passes for 1,503 yards in 11 games.

After Tagovailoa declared for the 2020 NFL Draft, Jones has been considered the front-runner to win the starting job under center for the Crimson Tide.