ATHENS — It’s official. There has been a “horns down” flashed in Georgia’s camp in advance of Saturday’s game against Texas.
That it came from Cash Jones should come as no surprise. As a native Texan, the smallish junior running back had every right to flash the hand signal Tuesday during a news conference at the UGA Athletics facility.
Jones hails from Brock, Texas, a small unincorporated city west of Fort Worth and just south of I-20. His family is somewhat of a rarity in the Lone Star State in that no part of it has any allegiance to the University of Texas.
His folks are more partial to Texas A&M. Jones’ formative football days came when Johnny Manziel was all the rage. So, Jones grew up an Aggies fan. He even did the “money hands” gesture after scoring a touchdown last year. Also, Jones’ older brother Tripp graduated from A&M, while his sister went to Texas Tech.
“We were kind of all over the place,” Jones said.
Despite being a 3-star prospect from Brock High School and a pretty big deal locally, Jones didn’t receive any scholarship offers from A&M or Texas or even TCU just 39 miles down the road. He did get one from New Mexico State and planned to accept it. That is, until he met former Georgia running backs coach Dell McGee, who convinced Jones he’d be better off joining the Bulldogs as a preferred walk-on.
“God put something on my heart,” Jones said. “I just felt like I had a great connection with coach McGee. He led me here, and it’s probably the best decision I ever made.”
Jones can flash two national championship rings and, later this year, a degree in communication studies, as proof.
Turns out, Georgia has needed Jones as much as he needed Georgia. First, Jones made his mark as a special-teams contributor. Then, because of a continuous cycle of injuries at running back, he’s played in 25 of 29 games over the past two seasons.
Georgia has played all six games this season without projected starter Roderick Robinson (toe), then lost sophomore Branson Robinson to a knee injury against Mississippi State on Saturday. Both are former 5-star prospects.
That leaves junior Trevor Etienne, Nate Frazier and Jones to man the running back position for Saturday night’s matchup at Texas Memorial Stadium.
Jones has four carries for 18 yards and one touchdown, and 82 yards on six receptions on the season. But he has developed into a pass-catching, pass-protection specialist for the Bulldogs. Both skills figure to play a major role in Saturday’s outcome. The 6-foot, 182-pound athlete vows to be ready.
“Good communication, remember who you have in the box and it’s definitely important to have good technique,” Jones said of pass protection. “We go through blocking every day. It’s my fourth year here, so I’ve had thousands and thousands of reps.”
Running, receiving or blocking, Jones figures to be an integral part of the Bulldogs’ plans for the Longhorns. Accordingly, he expects to have “a lot of family at the game.”
Be sure of this: There will be no divided loyalties among them. They’ll be dressed in red and black and likely flashing horns down.
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