Omaha Westside linebacker, 2025 Nebraska target Christian Jones sets timeline to commit (2024)

Christian Jones, star football player? Not at home.

The teenager widely considered to be a top 200 national prospect in the 2025 class is the guy who loses at video games to his younger brother. The standout Omaha Westside two-way player with two Class A state titles to his name has a twin sister — Darian goes to Marian, he laughs at the oft-repeated rhyme — who's never heard of some of the recent prestigious honors her sibling earned.

“I don’t think she even knows I’m good at football,” Jones said. “My family keeps me humble. I do it all for them because they pour so much into me and I want to just give it right back to them.”

Jones has been intentional about keeping football from becoming his whole personality since Nebraska delivered his first scholarship offer a few games into his freshman year. He eased into the recruiting process by taking most of his visits after his junior season. He’s been happy to just do his 1/11th as a linebacker and receiver as part of stacked Warriors teams.

Yet a defining decision is closing in like one of his hard-hitting tackles. Where will he play college football?

From among 20 or so scholarship offers have emerged a few finalists. He took official visits to Auburn, Nebraska and Oklahoma in June. He might take one or two more trips when the next recruiting period opens in September — Miami is a possibility, he said.

Then, time to make a call. He’ll graduate early to enroll at his future home in January.

“Me and my family are leaning toward making a decision a game or two into the season,” Jones said. “I think that may be when a commitment comes out and when it feels right after gathering more info and seeing some more things from the final schools.”

Jones has quite the database already, built from countless times in Lincoln along with tours of other brands like Notre Dame, Florida, Tennessee, Texas A&M, USC and others. He filters his observations into three “pillars” — culture, development and education — using tallies and his own additional research. Coaches and his potential fit in a defensive scheme also factor in, with all suitors generally projecting the 6-foot-3, 220-pounder as a middle or weakside linebacker.

With Nebraska, Jones said he’s kept a strong relationship with position coach Rob Dvoracek and other staffers, not to mention the five former Westside players on the roster. Multiple in-state Big Red commits continue to encourage the local option with him including Omaha North defensive lineman Tyson Terry.

The Huskers are set to rotate three upperclassman middle linebackers this year, with playing time largely unaccounted for beyond 2024. A path like that of, say, former Omaha Burke four-star ‘backer recruit Nick Henrich isn’t so far-fetched.

A decision will mean the end of an extended recruiting process. Fine with Jones, who has stayed even keel through the exciting and tedious alike.

“Sometimes I get tired of talking to 40-year-old men — sometimes I just want to talk to people my age,” Jones said. “You always have to be on your ‘A’ game — you can’t slip up. Not saying this in an overconfident way but I feel like I was made for this in the sense that it’s not overwhelming. It goes back to having amazing people around me that help keep my head straight and guide me in the right direction. It’s been fun and I’ve been very blessed.”

Committing is also one of his last to-dos to clear the deck and focus on a Westside threepeat. Jones will slide into more of a vocal leader role while building on a junior campaign in which he logged 55 tackles (nine for loss) and an interception in 13 games. He also made 20 receptions for 500 yards and nine touchdowns as a slot receiver.

Jones followed coach Paul Limongi from Burke to Westside for the 2022 season, calling the experience a “blessing in disguise” as he adjusted to a new school. Now the near future is about building, while finding clarity about what’s next for him after December.

“The biggest thing to avoid going into your senior year about to commit to a Division I college is complacency,” Jones said. “Success makes you soft, so I’d say fight in that every day. Don’t let myself skip a rep. It’s my senior year so let’s have no regrets.”