Incoming WSU football recruit D’Jimon Jones has been named the Seattle Times' male athlete of the year for his exploits not just on the football field, but on the basketball court and track as well.
Jones is a three-star recruit who, at 6-foot-2 and 185 pounds, figures to play defensive back for Alex Grinch. But he was Federal Way’s dual-threat quarterback for the past two seasons. Additionally, he was one of the leaders who helped lead FW to back-to-back basketball 4A state championships, and he also finished second in the high jump each of the last two years.
“D’Jimon is one of the best all-around athletes I have had the pleasure to coach,” Federal Way coach John Meagher told the Times. “He is simply a freakish athlete.”
Coaches sometimes exaggerate, but consider: Meagher watched UW receiver Chico McClatcher run around everyone in the South Puget Sound League for four years, and he has sent numerous players to FBS programs. He knows what he’s talking about.
Perhaps the thing that should get WSU fans most excited is what’s in these quotes, which presumably were obtained in separate interviews:
“D’Jimon is a great athlete and a winner,” WSU coach Mike Leach said. “His is a competitive example for everyone around him. We are proud to have him as a Coug.”
and
“He’s a tremendous athlete,” basketball coach Jerome Collins said, “but I think his best attribute is that he’s a competitor and he just competes.”
and
“He is the type of competitor who always rises to the challenge,” Track and field coach Chris Williams said.
How competitive is Jones? He broke his ankle early in football season, then pushed himself to come back early in an ultimately futile effort to get his team back in the state playoffs. And rather than suffer continued ill effects, he went on to play at an all-league level in basketball.
“I wanted to show everyone I could still jump and I could still run and I could still defend, that I still had that athleticism,” Jones said.
Well, here’s some basketball action from January:
— D'jimon Jones (@jonesdjimon1) January 16, 2016
Shout out to @Talai_Siah for the video here's a better angle pic.twitter.com/S0UKtc1V5A
— D'jimon Jones (@jonesdjimon1) January 18, 2016
I presume this was shot on his official visit to Pullman:
I believe I can fly pic.twitter.com/VkzfVUgnlj
— D'jimon Jones (@jonesdjimon1) January 23, 2016
And this from an all-star game in March:
All star game was active with the bro's pic.twitter.com/7bJDIpzjyb
— D'jimon Jones (@jonesdjimon1) March 19, 2016
And then Jones tweeted this on April 25:
Almost had 7ft pic.twitter.com/JQIL0gKsSG
— D'jimon Jones (@jonesdjimon1) April 26, 2016
Yep, still has that athleticism.
Congrats to Jones on his recognition, and I think I speak for all of us when I say I'm incredibly excited to see what he can do on a football field.