Collegiate Times

One of the top uncommitted recruits in the 2012 class, Cyrus Jones, is rated a four-star prospect by ESPN.com, Rivals.com and Scout.com.

The five-foot-10-inch, 180-pound athlete has 30 scholarship offers from which to choose, but he has recently whittled that list to seven schools.

“I’ve narrowed it down a little more,” Jones said. “It’s (in no particular order) Virginia Tech, Auburn, Alabama, Maryland, West Virginia, Virginia and Ohio State.”

Jones made his first official visit this past weekend, heading to Blacksburg to get a feel for Tech. The talented athlete left with high praise for the Hokies.

“I was real impressed by Virginia Tech,” said Jones, who is being recruited by Tech as a slot receiver. “I think it has everything I’m looking for in a school. It’s a matter of me talking it over with my family and trying to make the best decision.”

“I was real impressed with how tight the coaching staff was and how together they were, and I could see myself fitting in there. It’s a great academic school. I’ll probably study business in college. That, plus the campus is real nice. Everything is within walking distance. It’s a big college town that supports the football team. It’s kind of the big staple team in the area. The game atmosphere was crazy. It wasn’t even a big game, but I saw how crazy the game atmosphere was. I had a chance to interact with the players and bond with the coaching staff. It was real nice. It was a great visit and I’m glad I made it.”

Freshman wide receiver Kevin Asante and freshman linebacker Griffin Hite hosted Jones, who felt he established a good relationship with both players. He knew fellow Baltimore natives Corey and Kyle Fuller before the visit, saying he is “real cool” with the Fuller family.

Jones got along well with the players. As for the coaches, they made their message clear.

“Basically, they let me know I was a must-have for them,” Jones said. “They are moving in a big direction and their goal is a national championship. They win the ACC a lot, but they are trying to take the next step.”

Jones can take five official visits if he so chooses. At this point, though, he only plans on taking three.

“I’ve got two more officials set, to Alabama and Auburn. Alabama is on Oct. 21, and Auburn is for the Iron Bowl (on Nov. 26),” Jones said.

The Gilman star says there is no significance to the fact that these are currently the only three planned official visits.

“I’m just taking more in-depth visits to these places to get to know them better,” Jones said. “I’ve seen games at a lot of those other schools.”

A jack-of-all-trades type of athlete, Jones rushes, catches and plays defensive back in Biff Poggi’s program. He has potential as a running back, wide receiver or cornerback on the college level.

“I pride myself on being explosive when I get the ball, being able to change direction on a dime,” he said.

A version of this article appeared in the Sep 23 issue of the Collegiate Times.