COLUMBUS, Ohio — With all due respect to the reporters in attendance, the most important question of Cardale Jones’ Thursday press conference announcing his return to Ohio State for his junior season came when a teacher at Jones’ alma mater, Ginn Academy, inquired about his academic goals.
“I’m really proud of you for following the path of education. Without an education, you can’t be,” the teacher told Jones during his nationally televised press conference. “What are your educational goals? What will you be studying?”
“After life after football, I want to be a financial planner,” revealed Jones, who the Ohio State student directory currently lists as an African-American and African Studies major. “After I’m done with football, I still have my whole life to live. That’s where I think my education will come in handy.”
To most of the sports world, the moment was a footnote, a teacher planted in a sea of sportswriters to maintain the positive PR aspect of Jones’ announcement. But it was the most relevant question asked on Thursday of the Buckeyes quarterback, who made the rare decision to put his education before the immediate reward of millions of dollars.
Because, truth be told, if Jones was purely making a football decision, he probably would have been best suited entering the draft. According to research performed by his current coach, Urban Meyer, and high school coach, Ted Ginn Sr., Jones would have likely been drafted in the second round had he entered…
Continue Reading: Cardale Jones’ Decision Is Everything That’s Right with College Football
