Logan Jones looks to put growing pains behind him in 2023
Let’s face it, it’s hard to switch to a completely new position. It’s made even more difficult when your predecessor did it seamlessly.
Such was the story for center Logan Jones last year. Iowa had been blessed at the center position over the past three years with Tyler Linderbaum. The Solon, Iowa, native made such a miraculous transition from defensive tackle to becoming the best center in college football.
When fans learned that another similar story was brewing, they took off and ran with it.
“I think I said this before — we all kind of got sucked into it last year,” Iowa head football coach Kirk Ferentz said. “(Jones) just does things with such proficiency. We’re playing our first game last year, I totally forgot that he had never played college football. That’s a big hurdle, a big step for a guy.”
Ferentz was not the only one, really everyone got swept up in the hype. Expectations were not nearly tempered enough for Jones, who spent two seasons at defensive tackle before making the switch to center ahead of the 2022 season. Because of the success of a complete outlier in Linderbaum, everyone kind of forgot that the transition is extremely difficult. Much more goes into the center position beyond pure physical attributes.
“I’d say the hardest part of playing o-line is the fundamentals,” explained Jones in a recent media availability. “The fronts you see, you have to understand what the defense is doing because that will help you with what you’re doing.”
It was an up-and-down season for the Lewis Central product. Despite his fantastic strength and athleticism, his inexperience was on display. He faced a sizable learning curve, especially through the early part of the season.
“Last year I was kind of thrown into it. The first game I had no idea what I was doing, I was like, ‘Holy crap.’ As the season went on, I started to learn a bit more and understand what I was doing and why I was doing it versus just going out there and memorizing what I had to do.”
While the results weren’t always what he wanted, the 6-foot-3 center started every game last year, gaining vital experience. New Michigan transfer quarterback Cade McNamara has also proven to be a valuable mentor to the junior center.
“He’s seen a lot of football. We sit right next to each other in meetings, and I look over in his notebook and he’s got everything highlighted. I mean, his notebook is ridiculous, it’s the nicest set of notes I’ve ever seen. He knows football,” Jones said of McNamara.
Jones also mentioned the benefit of playing with two quarterbacks that took snaps from Rimington Trophy winners.
With two spring balls and a full season under his belt, the Council Bluffs, Iowa, native is ready to put it all together in 2023.
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