Monmouth Safety Jaeden Jones Named To Buck Buchanan Award Watch List

MONMOUTH SAFETY JAEDEN JONES NAMED TO BUCK BUCHANAN AWARD WATCH LIST

WEST LONG BRANCH – Monmouth University’s junior safety Jaeden Jones has been named to the 2026 Stats Perform Buck Buchanan Award Watch List, announced Tuesday. The Buck Buchanan Award is presented annually to the top defensive player in NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) football.

The Buck Buchanan Award has been presented annually since 1995, and Jones joins former star safety Mike Basil (2017) as the only Monmouth players to be named to the preseason watch list. Basil is the Hawks' all-time leader with 433 career tackles and spent time with the New York Giants after signing as a free agent in August 2018.

The watch list announcement comes a day after Jones was named a 2026 Stats Perform FCS Preseason Second Team All-American, a prestigious designation that recognizes him as one of the top defensive players in the country.

Following a true freshman campaign in 2024, which saw him rise up through the ranks with outstanding special teams play and increasing playing time with the first-team defense, Jones broke into the starting lineup on November 9 against New Hampshire and hasn’t looked back since. He finished the season with 23 tackles, including 10 solo stops, and was a finalist for FCS Special Teams Player of the Year.

Jones emerged as one of the premier defensive players in the FCS during his breakout 2025 season, establishing himself as the heartbeat of the Hawks' defense. He earned FCS Second Team All-American honors, First Team All-CAA recognition, and All-ECAC accolades after leading Monmouth with 118 tackles (ninth nationally), including 74 solo stops (second nationally), while adding five tackles for loss, one sack, one interception, one forced fumble and recovery, and four pass breakups. Jones recorded seven double-digit tackle performances while consistently showcasing his instincts, physicality, and sideline-to-sideline range, helping Monmouth to a 9-3 regular season and a 6-2 record in CAA play. His remarkable production transformed him from a promising young defensive back into one of the nation’s top safeties and the cornerstone of the Hawks' defense moving forward.

The 2026 Coastal Athletic Association Football Virtual Media Day will be held on Thursday, July 23, ahead of the first day of summer camp, which is expected in the first week of August. Monmouth will open summer camp under the tutelage of first-year head coach Jeff Gallo, just the second head coach in program history. Gallo is looking to build on the program's recent success while establishing its own identity.

The Hawks open on the road against Tennessee Tech, Saturday, August 29. The Golden Eagles finished ranked No.15 in the final AFCA FCS Coaches Poll last season, finishing with an overall record of 11-2 and 8-0 record in the Ohio Valley Conference. This season, they’ll be competing in the Southern Conference.