Dorian Jones, a freshman guard who committed to Rutgers in late August and joined the team at the start of the fall semester, plans to redshirt the 2025-26 season, a person with knowledge of the situation told NJ Advance Media.
It is unclear if the Cleveland, Ohio, native is eligible to play this winter. The Scarlet Knights were “still working on” the process as of mid-October, head coach Steve Pikiell told NJ Advance Media at Big Ten Media Day, as Jones was getting “some things straightened out.”
The former four-star recruit was previously committed to Ohio State, but he requested a release from his national letter of intent in late May as the result of “an academic issue,” per the Columbus Dispatch. After spending the summer in the classroom, Jones committed to Rutgers, where he previously took an official visit and seriously considered before committing to the Buckeyes.
Ranked as the 121st prospect nationally by the 247Sports Composite, he became the highest-ranked member of the Scarlet Knights’ 2025 recruiting class, which is ranked 35th nationally.
Regardless of his eligibility status, Jones was unlikely to play a major role this winter. Listed at 6-foot-4 and 160 pounds, he has a long way to go in the weight room to compete against the size and physicality of the Big Ten, and is behind in learning the Scarlet Knights’ schemes after missing an entire summer’s worth of practices.
“When you just arrive on campus and now you’re figuring out the weight room and you’re figuring out our system, you’re behind in some ways,” Pikiell said.
Whenever he does take the court, Jones will add “an elite athlete and a great kid” to the Rutgers roster, Pikiell said.
“He’s fast and quick and scores,” he said. “He can really score and he’s athletic. He’s a big time athlete. … He’s long and he’s a good worker, he can score and he’s athletic.”
Rutgers opens the 2025-26 season against Rider on Wednesday night at Jersey Mike’s Arena. Jones is not expected to be in the building as he returns home to Ohio due to a personal matter, but he is expected to be back in Piscataway for Monday’s game against Maine.
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