Duke’s Jones shines in Senior Bowl win

Associated Press

MOBILE, Ala.

Daniel Jones got his bad Senior Bowl moments out of the way long before kickoff.

The Duke quarterback threw a touchdown pass and ran for another score in the third quarter to lead the North to a 34-24 victory over the South Saturday, putting a nice finishing touch on the weeklong job interview with NFL teams.

“Just showing the poise and showing kind of a comfort in the offense is something they wanted to see,” Jones said. “At times, I’m not sure I did great with that, to be honest. But here in the game, I think I did get comfortable and I got into a rhythm. Hopefully that showed them something and showed them I had the ability to do that and had the resiliency to do that.”

Projected as a likely first-round pick, Jones turned in an efficient 8-of-11, 115-yard passing performance. Then, North Carolina State’s Ryan Finley took over in the fourth quarter.

Jones and Finley ignited a North team that trailed 12-3 at halftime only to score on its first five drives of the second half.

Jones led the North on an 84-yard touchdown drive to start the second half. He finished it with a 1-yard touchdown run but completed mid-range passes to four different receivers, totaling 57 yards.

After a fumble by Auburn quarterback Jarrett Stidham, Jones completed a 25-yarder to Ohio State’s Terry McLaurin on a flea flicker. Then UMass receiver Andy Isabella scored on a 19-yard catch after breaking a tackle on his way to the end zone.

Finley then delivered a 23-yarder down the right sideline to Isabella on fourth and 2 on the way to another North touchdown. McLaurin ran 23 yards on an end around to set up a 4-yard touchdown run by Notre Dame’s Dexter Williams.

Missouri’s Drew Lock and Jones are two of the top quarterback prospects in the draft, a group that also includes underclassmen Dwayne Haskins of Ohio State and Oklahoma Heisman Trophy winner Kyler Murray,

Lock was solid in playing the first quarter for the North, going 9 of 14 for 57 yards. Finley was 7 of 11 for 83 yards.

“It was fun. I had a blast. It’d be different if you got pulled and you’re sitting on the sideline watching your team win,” Lock said. “It’s how the dice fell. I got the first quarter, which was awesome. Everybody was going full-tilt, full-speed right from the get-go.”

AWARD WINNERS

While Jones was the overall MVP, Isabella received the award for the North team and Jackson got it for the South. Isabella had seven catches for 74 yards and a touchdown.