Jones edge rusher Fred Ards commits to Texas A&M
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Jones edge rusher Fred Ards, the No. 1 player in the Sentinel’s 2027 Central Florida Super60, has committed to play for Texas A&M.
The 6-foot-4, 245-pound defensive end picked the Aggies over South Carolina, Florida, Alabama and Florida State, which were his top five schools out of more than 30 FBS offers.
He said he was relieved to complete the process and is ready to finish what Jones has not been able to complete over the past two seasons. Jones finished as the Class 4A state runner-up the past two straight seasons and Ards said it’s time to win that state title.
Top Players Series: Football defensive line, Fred Ards, Jones High
“I’m pretty relieved. Now I can get better with my teammates and we’re gonna win states for sure,” Ards said. “We’re coming for the state title. I think we’ll do pretty good. Throughout this summer we just gotta get better as a team and know when to lock in, leave all the childish games to the side and grow up.”
Ards said his recruiter, A&M defensive line coach and co-defensive coordinator Elijah Robertson, was a key figure for the Aggies. Robertson made Ards a priority in the recruiting process after joining the Texas A&M staff from Syracuse in December.
“It was the relationship I built with Coach E throughout this whole process,” Ards said. “As soon as he got there from Syracuse and found out I was the No. 1 person on their board, as soon as he heard that, he came to my house and made it happen.
“After that, it was just the whole coaching staff, Mike Elko, Coach Tony (Jerod-Eddie), Coach Lyle (Hemphill) and Coach Stan (Watson). The relationships I built with those guys, I felt like that was the best place for me to develop as a man on and off the field throughout my four years of college.”
He loved his visit to College Station, Texas.
“It’s amazing, just the atmosphere there is something different, something you feel when you get off the plane,” Ards said. “It’s a different type of air, just being around that whole staff and the players.”
Ards, who had 80 tackles and 11 sacks last season, is eager to get to work with his new defensive line teammate Dajour Webb, a big defensive tackle who moved to Orlando from Gibsonia, Pennsylvania., where he played at Pine-Richland High.
“That’s a big addition. My boy Dajour, he’s gonna be crazy this year,” Ards said. “Me and him, we’re gonna be something different.”
He gave credit to his mother, Sabrina Antoine, and step-father, Ruben Butler, as well as Jones head coach Elijah Williams, for his growth along the way.
“(Mom) felt pretty good about it, she was happy,” he said. “I’ve definitely progressed a whole lot with my mentality and just my thought process, and also my play style.”
Chris Hays can be found on X.com@OS_ChrisHays.
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