Inducted 2023

George Jones’ tenure as a standout athlete in Kern County was short, but was very significant. A powerful running back at Eastside High School in South Carolina, Jones made an instant impact for the Bakersfield College football team, helping to lead the Renegades to the Western State Conference and Potato Bowl championships his two seasons on campus in 1993-94. Jones was twice named All-Western State Conference first-team. In 1994, he was named the Junior College Football Player of the Year, Western State Conference MVP, first-team Junior College All-American when he set the national record for rushing yards with 1,567 and 34 touchdowns, breaking OJ Simpson’s junior college record for rushing touchdowns in a season. After his BC career, he signed a scholarship offer to San Diego State, where he broke Marshall Faulk’s program rushing records for the Aztecs with 1,842 yards and 23 touchdowns as a junior in 1995. He was named the Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year and the team’s MVP. His senior year he rushed for 978 yards and 11 touchdowns despite being injury plagued that season. Jones was named to San Diego’s Hall of Champions Amateur Player of the Year and was an runner-up for the ESPY award of “Run of the Year.” The next spring, Jones was selected in the fifth round by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1997 and played for Jacksonville in 1998 and played for Cleveland in 1998.

In 2020, Jones was named to the California Community College Athletic Association Hall of Fame .