Razorback Roster Rundown: No. 70 Luke Jones

This article is part of a series previewing the Razorbacks’ 2020 football roster.

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Buried on the depth chart behind a couple of other young players, Luke Jones decided to transfer from Notre Dame after spring ball last year. He had not played as a true freshman in 2018 and both players ahead of him at center had four years of eligibility remaining.

It took less than two weeks for him to land back home at Arkansas. He applied for a waiver to play immediately for the Razorbacks, but it was denied.

A center with the Fighting Irish, Jones got reps at both guard spots in limited portions of practice open to the media throughout the season. There were even whispers from the program that he would have started or played significant snaps in 2019 had he been eligible.

Instead, he was limited to scout team duty as he sat out because of NCAA transfer rules.

Although he was primarily seen playing guard in practice last season, many are speculating Jones could push returning starter Ty Clary for the No. 1 spot at center.

If Clary can’t get his snaps figured out, then it wouldn’t be surprising to see him move to guard. With an offensive line guru in Sam Pittman as Arkansas’ new head coach and Brad Davis as the new offensive line coach, there’s reason to believe he’ll improve his snapping abilities.

In that scenario, Jones would become a frontrunner to start at the other guard spot opposite of Ricky Stromberg - whichever side that may be. Regardless, it seems as though the Notre Dame transfer has an excellent shot at getting on the field as a redshirt sophomore in 2020.

Jones committed to Arkansas and Bret Bielema’s staff during the summer before his senior season at Pulaski Academy, but it was a wild ride to Fayetteville from that point forward.

After picking up an offer from Notre Dame in October, he took an unofficial visit to South Bend for the USC game. He remained committed then and even through the coaching change, but he left the door open to change his mind.

Things were still looking okay for the Razorbacks when he took an official visit to Notre Dame, followed by an official visit to Arkansas on the final weekend before the early signing period. He didn’t sign in December, though, and ultimately flipped a couple of days after Christmas.

There was some speculation he might flip back to Arkansas when Harry Hiestand, the Fighting Irish’s offensive line coach and his main recruiter, took a job with the Bears, but he still signed with Notre Dame on Feb. 7.

It wasn’t until after one season in South Bend that Jones decided to transfer back home and finally join the Razorbacks - about 21 months after his original commitment.

MORE: Razorback Roster Rundown