Top 25: Clemson's most important players in 2025 - Ricardo Jones

Ricardo Jones holds immense potential, and his role could serve to strengthen the secondary.

Grayson Mann · Staff Writer · Saturday, July 12 2025

Clemson enters the 2025 season with answers at nearly every position.

As we continue to race down the list, we have another potential answer for the secondary that may take a massive jump in his sophomore season.

Ricardo Jones holds immense potential, and his role could serve to strengthen the secondary.

Grayson Mann: If there’s a word for Jones that fits him perfectly entering his sophomore season, it’s potential.

Like Griffin, Jones is another young safety who is looking to make the most of a vacuum at the position.

R.J. Mickens was the mainstay for this group, and now there’s a void for someone to step in and make big plays.

Almost immediately, as he stepped on the field in 2024, big plays followed him.

The result against App State was already in hand for the Tigers, but Jones wanted to put an exclamation point on the first win of the season.

The Mountaineers attempted a funky double pass on the right side of the end zone, and Jones was not fooled.

Despite it being his second game of college action, he stuck to the intended target like glue, and intercepted the pass, leading to a final roar from the Clemson crowd.

The play set the tone for his career, earning praise from the coaching staff for his tenacity and hard work.

The secondary needs playmakers, and Jones more than fits the description for what the Tigers need.

David Hood: Jones has a never-say-quit attitude, something he learned from his mother.

Head coach Dabo Swinney says that Jones shows great instincts for the game and playing safety, and it flashed at times last season. That was evident last season the play against Appalachian St. – referenced above – with the Tigers up 46.

Jones said he never forgets the lessons from mom.

“I grew up playing rec [recreational] football, travel basketball, and baseball. She always told me, 'If you quit on something, you’ll quit in life,'" Jones said. "If I quit running, I’m going to quit in life. I’m gonna quit in the big game in the fourth quarter when we need that stop.

“So, I try to never give up—whatever I do. If it’s in the classroom, if it’s a hard test, don’t give up. On the field, if we’ve got 10 laps, don’t give up. It’s just a mindset."

That mindset will help him this season as he vies for a starting spot on what might be Clemson’s most talented defense since 2018.