Common social media themes among Arkansas State University football fans have centered on the team's defense and recruiting.
Consider that the two most impactful players on this year's ASU defense, while not recruited out of high school by the team, are a pair of transfers -- Kivon Bennett and Joe Ozougwu -- that chose to come to Jonesboro because of their relationship with Coach Butch Jones.
"Everything in our program development is about recruiting and developing our players," Jones said earlier this week. "We're going to recruit the best of the best, and it's a year-round process. ... We're going to recruit nationally and we have to find the right fit for us."
Bennett, along with reserve defensive lineman John Mincey, was recruited to Tennessee out of high school when Jones was leading the Volunteers from 2013-17, and although Bennett was only a three-star recruit, he received a higher grade from 247Sports than any defensive player former ASU Coach Blake Anderson recruited to Jonesboro in his final four seasons with the Red Wolves.
The same can be said of freshman linebacker Cam Jeffery, an Alabama native who Jones believes could be an impact player later this season. Jeffery, linebacker Ethan Hassler and defensive end Dennard Flowers were the three overall highest-ranked players in the Red Wolves' 2021 recruiting class.
Although ASU brought in seven defensive high school prospects for this season, they received an average grade from 247sports of .8352 on a 1.0 scale, also better than any of Anderson's final four classes. That doesn't include the five transfers nor former junior college cornerback Leon Jones, who started last weekend at Tulsa.
Of the 12 verbal commits for next season, just four are defensive players but three of them are 3-star prospects with an average grade of .8360.
It's a sign of what is in the Red Wolves' future but Jones' past illustrates even clearer what he's capable of when it comes to defensive recruiting.
By comparison, it's probably best to separately analyze Jones' five classes at Tennessee. It's unlikely, at least in the near future, that ASU will be bringing in remotely close to the same quantity of high-level prospects that joined Jones on Rocky Top.
All five of his classes with the Vols ranked in the top 25 nationally, including a 2014 crop that 247Sports ranked as second-best in the SEC and included future NFL first-round defensive end Derek Barnett.
Jones led Cincinnati to a 23-14 record between 2010-12 and a pair of first-place finishes in the Big East. That conference -- headlined by a top-15 Louisville team along with the Bearcats and Rutgers -- is comparable to what the Sun Belt Conference is today, with No. 16 Coastal Carolina and Louisiana-Lafayette making strong headway.
During those three seasons, Jones' worst defensive recruiting class (2011) had an average grade of .8153, an improvement on each of Anderson's classes from 2017-19.
Before that, Jones led Central Michigan for three seasons. While his 2007-09 defensive classes weren't nearly as talented as those he brought to Cincinnati, his 2009 group was a major step up from his first two years, breaking the .80 barrier after hovering around .76 in 2007 and 2008.
Jones' first class with the Chippewas included an unheralded two-star defensive end from Pewaukee, Wis., named J.J. Watt.
Watt transferred to Wisconsin after his freshman season, but it speaks plenty that Jones was able to bring the future first-team All-American and three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year to Central Michigan in the first place.
What's always been evident with Jones is his recruiting pedigree. Whether it's Alvin Kamara (Tennessee) or Antonio Brown (Central Michigan), he's been an impressive talent evaluator.
Jones' haul of freshmen and transfers this fall made clear that wasn't going to change in Jonesboro.
With a little more than two months until the start of the early signing period, Jones has time to consider this season when settling on his 2022 class.
The Red Wolves are currently last in the nation in total defense, allowing 569.8 yards per game. They're 127th out of 130 Football Bowl Subdivision teams, surrendering 42.25 points per game, and it's the biggest reason why ASU is 1-3 despite scoring 34 and 50 points in two of its three losses.
And while some of Jones' defensive pieces are young -- notably Leon Jones, Samy Johnson, Denzel Blackwell and Taylon Doss -- their early struggles can spur Jones to look for replacements, be it in the transfer portal or the high school ranks.
"Now we're able to see them against competition, so every game I know a little bit more about where we're at as a football program, from toughness to mentality to athleticism," Jones said. "As the season continues to reveal itself, I know more and more what we need. ... I'm encouraged by what I see but make no mistake about it: Everything is about recruiting."
Saturday’s game
ARKANSAS STATE
AT GEORGIA SOUTHERN
WHEN 3 p.m. Central
WHERE Paulson Stadium, Statesboro, Ga.
RECORDS ASU 1-3, 0-0 Sun Belt Conference; Georgia Southern 1-3, 0-1
TV None