STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) -Richetti Jones rushed in from the edge, grabbed the quarterback and took him to the ground. As the crowd cheered, he savored the moment that had taken two years too long to arrive.
Finally, the celebrated recruit who had faded into the background had made his first college sack.
“It was just one of the greatest feelings of my life,” Jones said.
When Jones signed with Oklahoma State, he was one of the program’s most vaunted recruits. A dominant defensive end for Dallas’ Lincoln High School, Jones was chosen to play in the Army All-American Game and participate in an ESPN reality show for top college prospects.
Then his promising career was interrupted.
After jumping to block a pass, Jones landed awkwardly and fell to the ground, breaking his hip.
questions piled up on when he’d finally be able to play.
“It was just being able to persevere. Every day, I had to keep on working and keep on getting better, knowing that it wasn’t going to be an easy process and knowing that it wasn’t going to happen overnight,” Jones said. “No one could do it for me but me. It was a hard road.”
Jones did finally make it back on the field last year, but only in games that had gotten out of hand.
Coach Mike Gundy said he noticed that Jones was “really down” at times during his long recovery.
“When you’re a very highly decorated prospect coming out of high school and you don’t have some success early in your career, it can be a little difficult to handle,” Gundy said. “Even when you go back home over the break, everybody wants to know why you’re not playing and why they don’t see you on TV.”
When starter Jeremiah Price missed No. 16 Oklahoma State’s 41-24 win on Saturday against Rice with a hand injury, coaches turned to Jones to play a bigger role.
“I felt like I had something to prove to my teammates and my coaches, that I can get out there and get the job done,” Jones said.
He did just that. In the second quarter, he made his breakthrough by tackling quarterback John Thomas Shepherd for a 14-yard loss, and the Owls had to settle for a field goal.
d. “He is a very talented young guy. He just needs more experience. He needs more work in practice.”
Jones is hoping to build off his success when Oklahoma State hosts Grambling State this Saturday.
The former high school star said doctors told him that he’d probably never regain the abilities he had in high school, so he decided to reinvent himself as a player.
“I had to start relying more on my power instead of speed. In high school, I would just come off the ball and no one would touch me,” Jones said.
After recording one of the Cowboys four sacks this season, Jones said he feels he’s back on track toward becoming an impact player. And despite all he’s been through, he said he feels lucky to still be playing.
“I really can’t complain because I still was able to become a D-1 football player,” Jones said.
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