As soon as Maryland safety Deon Jones entered the transfer portal on Feb. 13, he knew who he was going to contact: Boston College defensive backs coach Aazaar Abdul-Rahim.
“I kind of had in the back of my head, ‘This is a no-brainer,’” Jones said after Thursday’s practice.
Back in 2017, when Abdul-Rahim was Maryland’s DBs coach, he recruited Jones out of Potomac High School. The former four-star defensive back was part of a Terrapins recruiting class that ranked 17th nationally and fourth in the Big Ten.
But the safety’s relationship with Abdul-Rahim started when Jones was still in middle school—at the time, Abdul-Rahim was the head coach of Friendship Collegiate Academy, a high school football program that he founded in 2003.
“He’s kind of like my father,” Jones said of Abdul-Rahim while chuckling. “He’s been taking care of me since I first met him. He was one of the reasons why I stayed home and went to Maryland, and he’s definitely one of the reasons why I came here as well.
“I love Coach Aazaar. I’d go to war with Coach Aazaar any day. I feel as though he’s always looking out for me. He put me in the best position that I could be in.”
But when it came to Jones’ decision to leave his home state for BC, his connection with Abdul-Rahim wasn’t the only motivating factor. Although he already graduated from Maryland with a degree in communication, the Oxon Hill native found out that he could pursue a master’s in sports administration at BC’s Woods College. Additionally, he knew that if he played well enough, BC had the track record to help him get to the next level.
Prior to transferring on March 30, the 6-foot safety said that he did his “research” on the Eagles’ newly-constructed pipeline to the NFL. In the past five years, BC has had five defensive backs drafted. He also was well aware of head coach Jeff Hafley’s expertise and NFL experience. Just as fellow transfer, and former Ohio State wide receiver, Jaelen Gill told reporters in mid-July, Jones said that he felt like he was “going to be taken care of” at BC.
Before Jones put his name in the transfer portal—a process that he said became “crazy” after the pandemic escalated—he was a key member of Maryland’s defense. Last fall, Jones played in 10 games, making six starts at safety. All in all, he totaled 34 tackles, one forced fumble, and a pass breakup.
He made his collegiate debut in 2018, a season in which the Terrapins’ defense ranked fifth nationally with 18 interceptions on the year. Jones wasn’t responsible for a single one of them, however, he did make 11 appearances. Notably, he forced a fumble against Michigan State and registered a season-high five tackles versus then-No. 19 Iowa.
Jones redshirted his freshman season at Maryland, even though he was one of nine Terrapins recruits that year rated inside the state’s top-20 rankings. When asked about the football culture in D.C., the veteran safety didn’t hesitate, rattling off names of college football stars who have emerged from the D.C, Maryland, Virginia (DMV) area, like Dwayne Haskins and Chase Young.
“I feel as though we’re good,” Jones said of the DMV. “We’re a powerhouse, a lot of people don’t put a lot of respect on our name, but it’s definitely there.”
Along with Jones, there are eight other Eagles on the 2020 roster who hail from Maryland, including running backs Travis Levy (also a Class of 2017 recruit) and David Bailey.
Jones is grateful that he has a chance to play this fall, especially after the Big Ten canceled its season on Aug. 11. The grad transfer said that he had friends calling him as soon as the news broke, asking about the ACC. As of now, it’s full speed ahead for him and the rest of the program.
Jones, who came up with a 3rd Down stop in the red zone during Thursday’s practice, is vying for a starting spot in an Eagles secondary that is looking to bounce back from a disappointing 2019 campaign. Last year, BC allowed 285.5 passing yards per game, the most in the ACC and the ninth-most in the country.
The Eagles are two weeks into camp, and during that time, Jones has already soaked up a ton of information from Hafley, who has drawn praise all offseason about his individual work with DBs, particularly his mentorship of Ohio State first-round picks Jeff Okudah and Damon Arnette.
“Coach Hafley’s done a tremendous job just changing my view of the game,” Jones said. “I’m still not where I want to be. I’m still learning. Every day, I’m trying to get better than I did the day before. As far as just playing football and the game slowing down for me, he’s definitely helping me get to where I want to be. Just having a vision, just being the quarterback of the defense.”
