Welcome to the 2019 FCS Kickoff Jersey Countdown.
The regular season begins Saturday, Aug. 24 with Samford vs. Youngstown State in the Guardian Credit Union FCS Kickoff along with Villanova playing at Colgate.
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HERO Sports is going to count down each day by highlighting the best player in the FCS who wears the jersey number equal to the number of days until kickoff. You can find the running list of top players here.
*Note: Jersey numbers are from the 2018 season.
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46: Jonas Griffith, LB (Sr.) — Indiana State
Griffith is set to be one of the best linebackers in the FCS this year and enters his senior season on our preseason All-American Second Team. The 6-foot-4, 250-pounder is a tackling machine and racked up 107 tackles in 2017 as a sophomore, earning Second Team All-Missouri Valley Football Conference honors.
He was even better last year. Griffith totaled 132 tackles, 81 solo, and added 9.5 tackles for a loss and 3.5 sacks. HERO Sports recognized his play with All-American Third Team honors and Griffith was named on the All-MVFC First Team.
RELATED: 2019 Indiana State Preview
His 7.4 solo tackles per game were the best in the FCS and Griffith's 12 tackles a game ranked fifth. In eight of Indiana State's 11 games, Griffith had double-digit tackles, including an 11-tackle performance against FBS Louisville. He had back-to-back games with 18 tackles against South Dakota State and Missouri State and went off with 4.5 tackles for a loss in the season finale against Western Illinois.
Expect big things from Griffith in 2019 and for him to go over 100 total tackles for the third year in a row. He's a terrific athlete that can pop the pads and be solid dropping back in pass coverage.
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