Rafell Jones prepped to step up

Ian Mayer Arizona Daily Wildcat Junior safety Rafell Jones helps an unidentified UA player tackle Iowa freshman running back Ladell Betts while junior linebacker Marcus Bell (40) looks on. Jones leads the team with 26 unassisted tackles.

That is what Arizona's starting free safety Rafell Jones had to endure last year.

"Sitting out last year, watching the season go by, you always have that thought in your head that you want to help, but you can't," Jones said.

This year, Jones, a redshirt junior from San Diego, does not have to worry about watching from the sidelines.

He won the starting free safety job in spring ball and has excelled at the position as well as becoming a defensive leader and playmaker for the Wildcats over the team's first four games.

"It's like an energetic thing to make plays," Jones said. "In our defense everyone has to have the thought that they are going to make plays. I go out there with the mind-frame that if I don't make it happen, no one will."

Jones is second in tackles for Arizona this year with 32. Of those, 26 are unassisted and two are for a loss. He also has four passes broken up.

If there is one thing Jones loves to do, it is to hit and make a big tackle in a crucial situation.

"Our defense is physical and we have to come down and smack somebody," he said. "As long we are always flying around and hitting somebody we should be all right."

Jones is a member of a small club at UA because he is a two-sport athlete. During the spring he floats around in center field for Jerry Stitt's baseball team.

He hit .328 with three home runs and 18 RBIs as a starter for the Wildcats. Jones also earned the Mary P. Roby Award for academic achievement for an athlete.

This football season Jones has shown improvements in his game that have warranted attention from the coaching staff.

"I think he has done a better job in the run and pass reads," said Duane Akina, associate head coach and defensive backs coach. "Rafell is a real solid player back there and he brings that presence in the middle of the field that we have historically had here."

One aspect of Jones' game that he and the coaching staff have been working on is his awareness of the ball and being able to intercept the pass.

"He has some improvements to make," head coach Dick Tomey said. "He needs to be aware of the ball. He gets locked into the receiver too much, but he is doing some good things for someone who hasn't played."

Jones also understands that he has room for improvement and that it will come with time and experience.

"I've improved in certain areas like studying the offensive scheme and getting clean reads. I am also understanding how the offense runs their plays," Jones said. "I do have a lot of room for improvement. I am still looking for that perfect game, but I don't think it will ever happen."

Jones credits senior cornerback Chris McAlister for some of the success that he and the rest of the defensive backfield have had this year.

"It's a great asset to the whole defense to have him out there," Jones said. "It's great when you can take advantage of someone who can shut down one receiver for the whole game. It cuts the field in half."

Despite not playing that perfect game or having an interception yet, Jones has been an integral part of the Arizona defense through the first four weeks of 1998 and said he will play baseball again in the spring.

Dan Rosen can be reached via e-mail at Dan.Rosen@wildcat.arizona.edu.