With WR Ah’mari Stevens departing from Miami’s 2027 class in April, it crowned local safety Jaylyn Jones as the Hurricanes longest tenured commit in the class and “real class ambassador” according to Israel Abrams.

The four-star McArthur standout has been steady in his commitment for nearly a year despite pushes from prominent national programs, and completed his official visit with the Canes this past weekend.

Here’s everything Jones had to say following his official visit to me for CanesInSight as he shut down his recruitment.

Overall thoughts following his visit:

"With the whole coaching staff and organization, it's been good — a great OV, I love Miami.”

“It’s cool spending time with them because I know next year that they’re going to be the guys to put me on the field and develop me. So it's definitely a good time, we've been bonding with each other and just building a little relationship before we actually get with each other.”

On coach Cristobal:

“That man there is an animal, he’s definitely the best coach that I've been around. The energy he’s got is matchable.”

Referencing Mario’s poses during the photoshoot - “That was different. I didn't even think he was going to do it like that. He brings a lot of energy around, a great coach to be coached by.”



On teaming up with high school teammate Sherrod Gourdine at the U:

“It’s different. Me and Sherrod started with each other in high school, so being able to commit to the same college was a dream he and I had.”

On what this visit meant for him:

“Just shows that this is home, man. This is where I want to be, that's why this is the only OV I’m going to take.”

“The players on the team, they just bring us in and welcome us. They showed that this is home.”

On his expectation for his 2027 class:

“Just a brotherhood. You see the 2027 commits we got, we just bonded with each other."

“We are hungry, we want dogs. We want straight dogs, the 2027 class, they are looking for us to be ready to play — they don't want us to sit. They are looking for us to get on the field and compete for a national title.”

 

As much as the culture that Mario has built here has been mentioned on these boards, I don't think that it can be mentioned enough. People want to know how we went from 7-6 in 2023 to being in the National Championship Game a few months ago. Are we considerably more talented? Yes. Are we much deeper? Yes of course we are but it takes more than talent and depth to build a Championship program. It takes talent and depth but you must have a great staff top to bottom and following the 2024 season, Mario made the moves he had to make to get this coaching staff to an elite level. Don't listen to me though. Listen to what all these recruits are saying! OK so we have talent, depth and elite coaching. What we else is necessary to win titles? Culture! Just look at what Mario has built in the last 2 years(actually 4 years) in terms of culture. He has built a squad that is 100% self policing. In order to do that he had to go out and get guys who were not just dogs on the field but great character kids who embodied his philosophy of loving football and wanting nothing more than to work to get better. He stocked this roster with super talented kids like Rueben Bain, Francis Mauigoa and Akeem Mesidor then kept surrounding them with other like minded kids who could play but had the type of character necessary. He kept doing this until the culture that came out of it became completely self sustaining and self perpetuating. As long as Mario and staff are here to lead of course.

Just listen to the kids we are bringing in. Listen to our players and commitments. When they invite the type of kids that are a fit for this program, it feels like home to them. Why? The reason is because the players here have the same type of character and mindset as they do so naturally they feel at home like this is family! We are not the right fit for everyone and Mario is straight up and up front about that. He won't even let someone commit until they have watched how we practice. Seriously where have you ever heard that before? I've never heard that before. Mario has taken a ton from what Saban did at Alabama and he does so because he is a sharp guy and he wants to build a winner so he borrows ideas and certain practices from winners like Saban.

I say all this because I can see that we are moving into what looks to be a potential golden age of Miami football and once that happens it's easy to start to take things for granted. I speak from experience. I grew up watching the Miami dynasty of the 80s to early 90s and when probation hit it tore us all the way down and if you ask me it was a minor miracle that our worst season during that era was 5-6. I saw what Butch Davis went through in order to get us back but when Butch left I just assumed that the coaches that followed him would do the same lol. They couldn't and it took is 21 years to find coach Davis's true successor.

I say all this because while I endorsed Mario's hiring, I had my reservations and some concerns. There were plenty of times when I truly didn't think Mario would ever turn the corner as a game day coach. I thought that perhaps he was so stuck in his tough and physical paradigm that he couldn't see how the game was progressing and the innovations that were being made. I called him a meathead on multiple occasions. I knew how much he loved the U but I was afraid that it just wouldn't work out and where could we possibly turn if it didn't. Then the SMU game happened and in my mind that was the last straw. The guy was never going to get it no matter how much talent he assembled. Then something strange occurred. Instead of packing it in, this team kept it together(A tribute to team leadership) and kept winning. Actually it was more than winning. It actually looked like they were having fun!

When we made the playoff I told my close friends that we could beat ATM on the road but I also said that I would be happy to win one game in the playoffs. The Miami team that I witnessed in that playoff run completely opened my eyes to what Mario had been trying to build all these years. When I saw the way we manhandled Ohio State, Mario's vision became crystal clear. Yes you build from the trenches outward and I understood that conceptually but until I saw our guys literally pushing around the types of teams that ESPN loved to fellate, I didn't really get it. The fact that Mario literally came of age as a top tier college football game day coach during that run just made it that much more special. Not just because I had been waiting for it and that our program needed it but the fact that everyone in the nation saw it as it happened. Everyone especially the young men that we will be recruiting in the next few years saw what all of us here saw and that in itself was one of the most important recruiting victories.

What I most want to get across is that we couldn't have hired a coach better suited for this job than Mario Cristobal and we are so fortunate to have him. He is literally the perfect coach for UM. There is nobody more passionate about this program and no one who would live, breathe, eat, sleep and sh*t this university more than Mario Cristobal. We don't have to worry about him getting poached by another school or worry about the NFL snapping him up because this has always been his final destination. Being the head coach at Miami and returning us to a National Championship winning level has always been his ultimate goal. He is as elite a recruiter as there is in the country. He is intensely driven and an excellent motivator. He is an elite builder of programs and now he is becoming an excellent game day coach right in front of our eyes. With all of those attributes I think the most impressive one might be the type of elite level culture he has created here at Miami. He only needs one more thing and that is to bring home a National Championship. In two months we will begin the quest for #6 and there isn't any other coach I would want to lead these young men.

 

Jones and JJ are an elite back to back hall at the position. Need some depth and would love Hypo! But jones is a dog