Tag: Kenny Jones

Rutgers football will host two commits this weekend for official visits

A pair of committed players are on official visits this weekend at Rutgers.

There will be two official visitors on campus this weekend for Rutgers football, both of whom are committed to the program.

Rutgers will host an offensive line duo of [autotag]Kenny Jones[/autotag] and [autotag]Carter Kadow[/autotag] over the weekend for official visits. Neither player was able to take an official visit in the summer or the fall.

Jones was the first player to commit to Rutgers in the 2024 recruiting class. He has very quietly been a leader of this class. He is a three-star recruit from Delran High School (Delran, N.J.) and ranked by Rivals as the No. 23 player in the state.

From Wisconsin, Kadow gave his verbal to Rutgers in June following a strong performance at camp.

Like Jones, Kadow is a three-star offensive lineman.

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He held a Power Five offer from Indiana as well as offers from Northern Illinois, Western Michigan and Yale. He was also recruited by Iowa State, Minnesota and Penn State among others.

This weekend represents the only official visit for both players. Both Jones and Kadow are projected to enroll at Rutgers in January.

What recruits are visiting Rutgers football on Saturday?

Rutgers football has a big recruiting weekend with Virginia Tech in town.

Rutgers football will host a number of top prospects at SHI Stadium on Saturday afternoon. A third straight home game for the Scarlet Knights will let them bring in a number of recruits as well as several committed players.

Scroll down and take a look at the players who are expected to be on campus on Saturday afternoon for Virginia Tech at Rutgers. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 PM ET on the Big Ten Network.

Bold denotes that a player is committed to Rutgers as part of the 2024 recruiting class.

There will also be several players at the game from Donovan Catholic High School and LaSalle Academy in Rhode Island.

Rutgers football recruiting: Connecticut three-star Will Black adds his twelfth Power Five offer

Will Black gets an offer from Rutgers football on Wednesday night.

Three-star offensive lineman Will Black from Connecticut was offered by Rutgers football on Wednesday night. For Black, it now makes an even dozen offers from Power Five programs.

An impressive 6-foot-7 and 295 pounds, Black projects as not just one of the top offensive tackles in the Northeast region but likely the nation. He plays for Choate Rosemary Hall (Wallingford, CT) and is a member of the 2025 recruiting class.

He holds a number of top offers from programs like Maryland, Miami, Michigan, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Penn State, Pittsburgh and Virginia Tech among others. He is a three-star recruit according to On3.

Black posted about the offer on social media on Wednesday night, tagging Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano:

 

The 2024 class is off to a strong start for Rutgers and is currently top 25 in the nation according to Rivals and 247Sports.

Two commits are currently slated to play the offensive line from the 2024 class:

  • [autotag]Raynor Andrews[/autotag] (a three-star offensive lineman from Miami, FL)
  • [autotag]Kenny Jones [/autotag](a three-star offensive lineman from Delran, N.J.)

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Kenny Jones welcomes Raynor Andrews to the class of 2024

Kenny Jones is excited to see Raynor Andrews join the 2024 recruiting class for Rutgers football.

Kenny Jones, the first player to commit to Rutgers football in their 2024 recruiting class, was excited to see another offensive lineman join him. On Saturday night, Rutgers landed a big-time commitment from Florida offensive tackle Raynor Andrews.

A three-star offensive lineman from Norland High School (Miami, FL), Andrews represents a big recruiting win for Rutgers. The Big Ten program won the recruiting battle to land Andrews against the likes of Central Florida, Colorado, Florida State, Syracuse and West Virginia among several other programs.

For Jones, a guard at Delran High School (Delran, N.J.), the addition of Andrews is welcome news. The first member of the 2024 recruiting class to commit to Rutgers, the Scarlet Knights now have two offensive linemen in a class that now totals 11 verbals.

“To be honest I’m really glad and excited that more and more players are believing in Rutgers and knowing that Rutgers is going to have real change in the upcoming years,” Jones told Rutgers Wire on Sunday night.

“I love seeing more and more players come and be a part of the Rutgers family.”

Rivals and 247Sports rank Jones as a top 20 recruit in New Jersey. ESPN.com has him at No. 21 in the state for this recruiting cycle.

All four major recruiting services (including On3) rank Jones as a three-star.

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Jones, as the first commit, is in many ways a leader of this class. He is excited by what he sees coming of a class that is now top 30 nationally.

“It feels amazing to know people commit,” Jones said.

“Seeing it from the beginning and slowly building up is great.”

The 2024 class currently ranks No. 22 in the nation according to 247Sports.

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Judah Pruitt says academics, relationship with Marquise Watson helped him land at Rutgers

Defensive lineman Judah Pruitt opens up on why he picked Rutgers football.

Judah Pruitt committed to Rutgers football on Saturday in large part due to his connection with the school. A connection that he says went beyond the football field.

A three-star offensive lineman, Pruitt picked Rutgers over Power Five offers that included Boston College and Syracuse. He comes to Rutgers as a defensive line commit. With an impressive frame at 6-foot-5 and 330 pounds, there is the belief that he can handle more muscle with ease.

The Saturday commitment from Pruitt came while on a visit to campus for a scrimmage. Per 247Sports, he is the No. 28 recruit in New Jersey.

A good student at Malcolm Shabazz High School (Newark, N.J.), Pruitt said Rutgers gave him the perfect fit for football and academics.

In talking with Rutgers Wire on Saturday, Pruitt outlined his reason for committing to Rutgers:

“The reason why I picked Rutgers is because it really feels like home, the coaching staff cares about the team and everyone that is going to be a part of the family,” Pruitt said.

“But despite the football part, the Rutgers business school is incredible and that’s what I want to take part in for the next four years in college, leading to the NFL.”

Pruitt is now the fifth commitment to the Scarlet Knights in their 2023 recruiting class. He is the third verbal from New Jersey, joining offensive lineman [autotag]Kenny Jones[/autotag] and quarterback [autotag]A.J. Surace[/autotag].

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Capable of playing on the offensive line or as a defensive tackle, Pruitt said that his bond with defensive line coach Marquise Watson is a strong one. The recruitment by Watson is a major reason why Pruitt was attracted to the Scarlet Knights.

“My relationship with coach Watson is great,” Pruitt said.

“I’ve known him since my junior season and he’s been recruiting me since then. He’s like family.”

Last Saturday, three-star linebacker Sam Pilof from Wisconsin committed to Rutgers while on a visit.

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Three-star offensive lineman Judah Pruitt previews his Rutgers football visit on Tuesday

Rutgers football is hosting Judah Pruitt this week.

Three-star offensive lineman Judah Pruitt is set to visit Rutgers football on Tuesday.

Pruitt, ranked the No. 27 player in New Jersey according to 247 Sports, has a number of Power Five offers. The class of 2024 recruit from Shabazz High School (Newark, N.J.) holds offers including Boston College, Old Dominion, Syracuse and Temple as well as Rutgers.

His first offer came in January from Syracuse. Rutgers was his second Power Five offer in late January.

He is a 6-foot-5, 315-pound interior offensive lineman. In March, he visited Boston College. Tuesday will be his first chance to check-out Rutgers this spring.

Pruitt also plays defensive tackle for Shabazz, a program that went 5-6 last season.

“What I’m hoping to see (Tuesday) at Rutgers is the linemen being physical as ever,” Pruitt told Rutgers Wire. “And things with Rutgers are going amazing right now – they show mad love.”

And mad love, Pruitt says, is “that they’re texting me all day, and making sure I’m good.”

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In the 2024 recruiting class, Rutgers football currently has three players committed:

  • [autotag]Kenny Jones[/autotag], a three-star offensive lineman from New Jersey
  • [autotag]A.J. Surace[/autotag], a three-star quarterback from New Jersey
  • [autotag]Gabriel Winowich[/autotag], a four-star running back from Michigan

As for the school recruiting him the hardest, right now Pruitt says that is Boston College.

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Isaiah Campbell is offered by Rutgers football this week

Isaiah Campbell is offered by Rutgers football this week.

Rutgers football is now the sixth Power Five offer for Isaiah Campbell, a defensive lineman from North Carolina. The Scarlet Knights offered the standout this week, becoming his first Big Ten offer.

A class of 2025 recruit, Campbell is coming off a strong season for Greene Central (Snow Hill, NC). The 6-foot-4, 265-pound defensive tackle had 61 total tackles, five sacks and two fumble recoveries as the Rams finished the season 10-2.

In addition to football, Campbell also plays basketball and runs track.

He held previous offers from Duke, North Carolina, North Carolina State, South Carolina and Virginia. His most recent offer came from Virginia in mid-March. Last week, he visited South Carolina.

Campbell tweeted about the offer from Rutgers football on Wednesday night:

 

So far, Rutgers football has three recruits in their 2023 class. Two of the players are from New Jersey (offensive lineman [autotag]Kenny Jones[/autotag] and quarterback [autotag]A.J. Surace[/autotag]).

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[autotag]Gabriel Winowich[/autotag], a four-star athlete from Michigan, is the only out-of-state athlete. The highest-ranked recruit in the class, Winowich is from Michigan.

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Kenny Jones is locked in on Rutgers football – “my home”

Kenny Jones says he will only be visiting Rutgers football this spring.

The first commitment to the Rutgers football 2024 recruiting class is all-in. Three-star offensive lineman Kenny Jones is eyeing up a spring that he says is all about the Scarlet Knights.

Committed to Rutgers since November, Jones is now one of three verbals to the program. He is a three-star recruit from Delran High School (Delran, N.J.) and ranked the No. 20 player in New Jersey according to Rivals.

With spring practice set to begin this week, he now plans on visiting Rutgers on April 8. He also potentially will be at the Spring Game on April 29.

Jones said on Saturday he now has no other visits planned and that he is “110 percent with Rutgers.” There will be no visits to Maryland, Penn State or Temple.

“I’m only going to Rutgers, my home,” Jones told Rutgers Wire on Saturday.

A lot has changed around Rutgers since committed last fall. There is a new offensive coordinator (Kirk Ciarrocca) and a new offensive line coach in Pat Flaherty among other changes.

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Scott Vallone is the new offensive line assistant after receiving a bump in responsibilities earlier this year. 

“I love the staff. The only person I haven’t talked to was coach Flaherty but I will soon be able to talk to him,” Jones said.

“My favorite coach at the moment is coach Vallone because is a funny guy sometimes.”

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Rutgers football recruiting: Kenny Jones is raw but has a lot of tools to develop

Rutgers football landed a strong and physically impressive recruit in offensive lineman Kenny Jones.

In November, Kenny Jones was the first commitment to Rutgers in the 2024 recruiting class. The offensive lineman out of Delran High School (Delran, N.J) received an offer from Rutgers in late September and committed just five weeks later.

The 6-foot-4, 305-pound offensive lineman picked Rutgers over offers from UConn and Temple. Other schools like Ole Miss, Michigan, Penn State, Boston College, UConn, Dartmouth, Illinois, Liberty, Wake Forest, and Georgia also involved in his recruitment. 

Evaluating Jones’s skillset

Jones has Power Five size with solid footwork. Jones has all the tools to develop into a dominant lineman in the Big Ten. Offensively, Jones has a quick first step, providing good leverage off the line of scrimmage.

Jones’s commitment continues a strong pipeline from South Jersey to Rutgers.

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Areas to work on

Jones’s strength and size make him tough to stop, but consistency in his technique is an area to work on. Watching the film, Jones relies on his size to move defenders off the ball. As the 2024 recruit develops, pad level and footwork will be the focus. Right now, Jones’s technique remains raw and needs development.

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Consistency is the key to success, and offensive line coach Pat Flaherty and assistant Scott Vallone will need to continue to develop Jones’ technique and not merely rely on his size and strength. He blocks well at the second level and generates good power from his lower body.

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Rutgers football recruiting: Kenny Jones makes a huge block in season opener

Rutgers football recruit Kenny Jones makes a nice block at the Battle at the Beach.

Rutgers football recruit Kenny Jones is off to a strong start to his season, showing why he is going to develop into a strong recruit who likely will have national offers.

The class of 2024 guard from Delran High School (Delran, N.J.) showed his strength and agility in getting to the second level for a block in the opening weekend. Delran is playing Wayne Valley at the annual Battle at the Beach, hosted by Ocean City High School.

As for Jones, Rutgers football is his first Power Five offer. He also holds offers from UConn and Temple.

Jones pulled an impressive block, squaring his shoulders well and pushing a defender back. He sealed the hole and then absolutely plowed over the defender, allowing for a good gain:

 


According to Rivals, Jones is a three-star recruit and the No. 11 player in the state in the class of 2024.

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The Battle at the Beach features top programs from all across New Jersey as well as Pennsylvania.