The two starting quarterbacks taking the field in college football’s first “official” championship game are at two ends of the spectrum coming into Monday night’s game in AT&T Stadium.
Oregon is led by 2014 Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota, while Ohio State’s signal caller Cardale Jones is only about a month into being the Buckeyes’ starting QB after J.T. Barrett suffered a broken ankle in the Michigan game.
By now, we all know that Mariota wasn’t a highly-recruited high school star at Saint Louis High in Hawaii. He became a starter in his senior season (highlights above), leading Saint Louis to an 11-1 record and state championship. He threw for nearly 2,600 yards and 32 touchdowns, while rushing for 455 yards and seven touchdowns.
So what was Jones’ story in high school?
Jones played at Cleveland’s Glenville High School under Ted Ginn. He led the Tarblooders to the 2009 Ohio Division 1 championship game, losing 16-15 to Hilliard Davidson. According to his bio on the Ohio St. website, Jones was 24-3 as a starter, throwing 1,689 yards as a senior and 22 touchdowns. As a junior he threw for 2,168 yards and 18 touchdowns.
You can watch Jones’ high school highlights below.
