Report: former prized recruit Jones to leave Gophers football program

Jeff Jones, arguably the top Minnesota Gophers football recruit in a decade, is transferring.

According to multiple reports, the former Minneapolis Washburn star running back is headed to Iowa Western Community College.

The athletic and versatile Jones redshirted with Minnesota in 2014, before seeing limited action during the 2015 campaign. After arriving on campus as a running back, Jones tried his hand at receiver this season; he ended up playing in three games for the 5-7 Gophers but recorded no statistics of note.

Coming out of high school, Jones was rated by Rivals.com as the nation's seventh-best running back. He was tabbed a four-star recruit by multiple recruiting websites.

The Gophers appear set at running back for the foreseeable future, after freshman Shannon Brooks rushed for a team-high 654 yards and seven touchdowns in 2015.

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