An Air Force Academy defensive back has drawn national recognition heading into the upcoming college football season, with the program's secondary drawing early attention from award voters.

Air Force safety Roger Jones Jr. was named to the Jim Thorpe Award preseason watch list, joining 34 other defensive backs from around the nation. The award goes to the nation's best defensive back and includes a character component. The honor was captured in 2023 by Air Force's Trey Taylor, giving the Falcons program back-to-back connections to the prestigious recognition.

Jones made 76 tackles as a sophomore last season, grabbing two interceptions and recovering a fumble. Those numbers helped establish him as one of the more productive defensive backs in the Mountain West and drew the attention of preseason evaluators at the national level.

Despite the individual accolade, Jones does not currently hold a starting spot heading into fall camp. A sign of the depth the Falcons feel they have in the secondary, Jones sits third on a depth chart issued recently, behind sophomore Cade Paterson and junior Kyle Chen at strong safety, though more than three weeks remain before the season opens.

Jones was the lone service academy player named to the preseason list and one of two from the Mountain West, joining New Mexico senior safety Austin Brawley. His inclusion reflects well on a program that has developed nationally recognized defensive back talent in recent years, even as internal competition keeps his path to a starting role unsettled.

How the Falcons' depth chart at safety shakes out over the remaining weeks of camp — and whether Jones can move up the depth chart before the season opener — will be worth monitoring as the team moves closer to its first game.