Cardale Jones only threw 270 passes during his time at Ohio State. His numbers are not remarkable: 167-270 for 2,323 yards, 15 touchdowns, and seven interceptions, with 617 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns. At 6'5 and 253, he has NFL size to spare, but his minimal experience and shaky 2015 have him considered a mid-round prospect.
He only started 11 games as a Buckeye, but he is sure to stick in the memory of college fans across the country, not just in Ohio. Some of that has to do with his first three career starts coming in the Big Ten Championship and then the first-ever College Football Playoff. That's one way to introduce yourself.
But we won't be alone in remembering Jones as one of the just plain funnest college players in a long time.
1. He's a social media treasure. Most people first heard of Jones when he tweeted that he was at Ohio State to play football, not "play school." He caught some heat for that, but changed his tune.
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Now he even fixes the typos of media outlets who misspell his teammates' names.
His original tweet, ironically enough, found its way into an Ole Miss textbook for incoming freshman under the social media best practices section.
2. Furthermore, he tried to tweet his way into a date with UFC star Ronda Rousey. She declined, but undaunted, he showed up to fall camp wearing a Rousey shirt anyway.
Nice shirt, Cardale pic.twitter.com/BFNiXrq36c
— Ryan Ginn (@RyanGinnBSB) August 9, 2015
As of 2016, he's still lovingly wishing her happy birthday.
3. Minutes after leading the Buckeyes to the 2014 national championship, he hit Urban Meyer with bunny ears at the press conference.
THE KING IS HERE pic.twitter.com/OBEBCrsfkT
— Land-Grant Holy Land (@Landgrant33) January 13, 2015
4. He then made tightwad NFL media members throw a fit when he held a press conference announcing he was returning to school.
5. He strives for the best at all times, even while playing NCAA Football against kids in the hospital.
Man I wish everyone stop saying I beat a kid in the hospital 91-35.... It was 98-35, had 91 with 1:26 left in the 4th pic.twitter.com/TAJxefv5A4
— Cardale Jones (@CJ12_) February 10, 2015
5a. He talked a big mess when that same kid wanted a rematch.
@bearfoley rematch? You sure? May I remind you....... 98-35, lucky that wasn't on PS4, I really took it easy on you bro
— Cardale Jones (@CJ12_) April 23, 2015
This kept going until Jones agreed to learn how to play an NHL game.
6. When some putz on Twitter told him to #StickToSports instead of sharing political opinions, Cardale rocked him so bad that the guy went and deleted his account.
7. You can connect with him on LinkedIn!
8. He beefed with the Chicago Bulls' Joakim Noah, for some reason. Everyone should probably get into it with Noah at some point.
Noah on bench watching Cardale Jones on the public address mic mouthed, "you ain't in the SEC"
— Anthony Lima (@SportsBoyTony) May 7, 2015
@JoakimNoah watch yo mouth before I give you these hands chump
— Cardale Jones (@CJ12_) May 7, 2015
9. He faked a transfer to Akron in celebration of "May Fools."
10. When asked about Ohio State's crowded QB depth chart, he laughed at Notre Dame's lesser QB competition.
11. When not trampling regular-sized football players ...
12. ... he can definitely throw a football 74 yards. Jones has claimed he can reach 85 yards, and teammate Evan Spencer says, "You guys haven't seen all of his power. I've seen Cardale on one knee throw the ball 65 yards. I was dumbfounded."
13. When Ohio State's defensive coordinator took another job and tweeted about it while still on the clock, Jones declared him an immediate enemy. Playfully, of course.
14. Cardale's roommate and frequent foil, safety Tyvis Powell, is also in this year's draft class. Here are just the highlights of their public friendship:
Tyvis Powell says roommate Cardale Jones swears after the season he's going to make taco salad. "Please pray for us. He cannot cook at all."
— Nicole Auerbach (@NicoleAuerbach) January 10, 2015
#OhioState DB Tyvis Powell on his pal Cardale Jones' old idea to become a wideout. "He'd probably have to lose 100 pounds. He's so fat."
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) January 10, 2015
Powell's attempt to play reporter at Cardale's media availability ahead of the Playoff title game blew up in a hurry.
If you think going straight to a joke about his mom was a bit rough, know that these two have been saying they're each other's fathers for a while.
#FathersDay pic.twitter.com/TuHDgbhtKA
— Tyvis Powell (@1Tyvis) June 21, 2015
@1Tyvis just ungrateful! NEVER heard of the child asking their DAD for a gift on Father's Day, how dare you!
— Cardale Jones (@CJ12_) June 8, 2015
It comes a time where every boy thinks he can beat his father, I think @1Tyvis is at that point of his life, better think twice son
— Cardale Jones (@CJ12_) June 8, 2015
When Jones announced his college return, Powell celebrated the household finances remaining stable.
The rent is SAFE!!!!
— Tyvis Powell (@1Tyvis) January 15, 2015
After Cardale's pro day, Powell declared himself a "proud father."
@1Tyvis said he was proud of his son @CJ12_ said he made some great throws today at the #OhioStateProDay #CampusRush pic.twitter.com/Bu3SvURwHN
— Tino Bovenzi (@OSUTINO) March 11, 2016
We don't think it's too much to ask for Cardale and Powell to end up on the same team in the NFL. It's a modest request, but its fulfillment would cause this entire staff to hoot and holler in celebration for a minimum of 12 hours.
Whether Cardale Jones is a huge success in the NFL doesn't change anything.
He's given college football fans across the country lots of good things to remember, and that's enough. Hopefully he keeps being himself and wins at the NFL level, because ...
15. ... that would drive some very serious people nuts.