TAMPA, Fla. — The undefeated Armwood Hawks (5-0) shut out the defending FHSAA Class 3A state champion Jefferson by a score of 20-0 on Friday night. In only his second game back from arthroscopic knee surgery to repair a torn meniscus, Florida running back commit Matt Jones rushed for 89 yards and one touchdown on 13 carries.
Not everything was positive for for Jones, however. The 6-foot-3, 215-pounder had a fumble and was part of another turnover after a botched handoff from quarterback Daryl Richardson resulted in a Jefferson recovery.
Jones’ night was highlighted by a long run early in the second half, where he took a handoff to the right cut upfield for a 53-yard gain. He was eventually caught from behind by Jefferson defensive end Tyriq McCord, who is also being heavily recruited by the Gators for the Class of 2012.
After missing the first three games of the year, Jones is starting to see his right knee round back into game shape. He had just six carries a week ago in a blowout win over Leto HS. On Friday night against Jefferson, his workload increased to 13 carries in the win over the Dragons. Still, Armwood head coach Sean Callahan admitted that it will take some more time for his star running back to return to full strength.
“He’s getting better, for only practicing two weeks,” Callahan said. “It’s going to take time. He really hasn’t done anything since the end of June. I’m not worried about him. He made some plays tonight—it’s not like he didn’t do anything.”
Jones agreed that he is not completely healthy at this time, but that his knee continues to get better day-by-day.
“I’m about 90-percent right now,” Jones noted of the strength in his recovering right knee. “I just still have a little swelling in my knee that’s stopping me from bending it all the way and getting it fully extended. That’s why I couldn’t break that run because I couldn’t extend my knee. The swelling is going down day-by-day.”
While being out of action for a couple of months, Jones had the chance to watch all of Florida’s first four games. Jones said he can already see himself helping the Florida offense in the red-zone.
“I’ve been watching all the screens and the runs inside,” he reports. “I see myself fitting right in there. When it’s third-and-one on the goal line they need someone that can pound it in.”
Jones will be one of the many top recruits from around the state and Southeast to attend the Florida-Alabama game in the Swamp on Saturday night. Jones said he is looking forward to watching Florida’s defense match up against a powerful Alabama offense.
“I’m looking forward to playing a tough and hard game,” he said of what he expects from the Gators on Saturday night. “I know Alabama is a big and skilled team that can pound the ball at us. I’m looking for our defensive line to dominate and hold Alabama to a shutout or something good, and we can get the W.”
Jones has always been one of Florida’s top recruiters since he committed to the Gators back in February. Saturday will be no different as Jones said he plans to help recruit Berkeley Prep athlete Nelson Agholor and his opponent Friday night, Jefferson defensive end Tyriq McCord.
Gator Country football and recruiting analyst Derek Tyson can be reached at Derek@GatorCountry.com. You can also follow him on Twitter at DerekTysonGC.