College Career
Jones attended the University of Southern California and became one of the few African American starting quarterbacks of that era in Division I (NCAA), influencing during his college career the breaking of different color barriers.
As a sophomore in 1969, he helped lead USC to an undefeated season (10-0-1), a Rose Bowl win over the University of Michigan and a third place ranking. During that season the team became known as the "Cardiac Kids", because of their last-minute comebacks. Jones was also the first African American quarterback to appear on a Sports Illustrated Cover (9/29/1969).
In 1970 he was part of USC's "all-black" backfield (the first one of its kind in Division I (NCAA) history), that included fullback Sam Cunningham and running back Clarence Davis. Jones was one of the five USC African American starters (along with Sam Cunningham, Clarence Davis, Charlie Weaver and Tody Smith), that played against an all-white University of Alabama football team, winning 42-21 in Birmingham on September 12, 1970. This game was historically significant, because it played a key role in convincing the University of Alabama and its fan base to accelerate the integration of its football team.
For his career he compiled a 22-8-3 record and established school marks at:
- Career passing attempts (602)
- Career passes completed (382)
- Career passing yards (4,902)
- Career rushing attempts (842)
- Career touchdown passes and rushing (42)
- Passing yards in a season (1,877)
- Touchdown passes in a season (13)
- Most passes attempted in a season
- Total yards in a season (1,936)
- Most passes attempted in a game (36)
- Most passes completed in a game (21)
Read more about this topic: Jimmy Jones (Canadian Football)
Famous quotes containing the words college and/or career:
“Generally young men are regarded as radicals. This is a popular misconception. The most conservative persons I ever met are college undergraduates. The radicals are the men past middle life.”
—Woodrow Wilson (1856–1924)
“Work-family conflicts—the trade-offs of your money or your life, your job or your child—would not be forced upon women with such sanguine disregard if men experienced the same career stalls caused by the-buck-stops-here responsibility for children.”
—Letty Cottin Pogrebin (20th century)