Derryk Snell became a rarity during his time as a Bobcat: a fullback who’s one of his team’s biggest stars and most important offensive players.
Certainly then, there was plenty of chatter about Montana State football losing the tight end/fullback to graduation after MSU’s 2023 campaign. Affectionately called the Alaskan Assassin, Snell had been a glue player for the Bobcats. He did all the so-called little things necessary to spring teammates for big plays and making some of those plays as well.
The Bobcats took a step back, offensively, when Snell suffered a career-ending injury midway through the 2023 season. Replacing him became an immediate priority due to his keystone role with the team.
Seeing University of Maine junior-to-be Rohan Jones enter the transfer portal, MSU head coach Brent Vigen jumped quickly. As did Jones, who was at spring camp and immediately began turning heads. That neck-snapping effect continued throughout fall camp and Jones hasn’t stopped there.
Wearing Snell’s old No. 8 jersey, the 6-foot-3, 235-pound Jones made a key 16-yard reception to ignite the Bobcats early during their game-winning drive against New Mexico. Last week at Utah Tech, he led all receivers with 66 yards on four receptions and caught his first touchdown when he went 45 yards for a score. He also had important receptions on third and fourth downs.
“That’s what I expect of myself and that’s what the coaches expect of me,” Jones said of his touchdown. “It was a good play and I’m just happy the coaches trust me to make those type of plays and (quarterback) Tommy (Mellott) feels like I can make those plays as well, so it was a great moment for our team.
“I pride myself on my receiving skills and just my play with the ball in my hands. I’m happy that Tommy trusts me in those moments on fourth-and-5, third-and-6. I know that I’m going to get open, so I’m happy that he sees that as well and puts the ball on me.”
He now has seven receptions for 91 yards and a TD in just two games. Those numbers stack up well with Snell’s output as a receiver as he averaged about two receptions a game for MSU and his top season as a pass-catcher was 2022 when he had 22 receptions for 324 yards and three TDs in earning first-team All-Big Sky accolades.
“I feel like our entire tight end room has been doing good,” Jones said. “Ryan Lonergan, Hunter Provience and Rylan Schlepp, we all played good either in the blocking game or the passing game. Now we have two tight end touchdowns (Schlepp had the other against UNM).”
Jones, coincidentally, caught the same number of passes (22) in 2023 for Maine as Snell had in 2022. He gained 240 yards on those receptions and five went for touchdowns.
Another coincidence is that Jones will be playing against his former team just a year after transferring to MSU. Jones will make his Bobcat Stadium debut against the Black Bears on Saturday night at 6 p.m.
“I just felt like I needed a change of scenery,” Jones said of his move to MSU. “Coming here where the tight ends are heavily involved and a place where I get to work on what I need to work on, which is my run blocking. I’m more of a complete player now.
“I’m not really focused on (Maine). It’s all about us and it’s my first home game here in Bobcat Stadium, so I’m really excited to play here in front of our fans in our town. It’s going to be fun to see some of (my old teammates).”
Being a great pass-catcher isn’t the only unique item on Jones’s resume. He hails from Montreal, Quebec, Canada and attended high school at College Andre-Grasset and College Jean-Eudes. Andre-Grasset is described as “a private, French-speaking pre-university college institution. It welcomes about 1,200 students looking for a high-level education.”
While there he caught 55 passes for 639 yards and five touchdowns in 2021 and was named the team’s Offensive Player of the Year. In 2018, at Jean-Eudes, he led the team to the provincial championship and was an All-Star kick returner, while being named the squad’s Most Valuable Player.
Another interesting fact about Jones is that he was encouraged to come to MSU by former teammate and former Bobcat’ running back Jaharie Martin, who Jones was in school with for a short time at Maine.
“It’s pretty funny, because I was with him for a semester when he went to Maine,” Jones said. “He told me good things about coming here when I was in the portal. It’s fun that he gets to play his old team and I get to play my old team and we’re both looking to get a win this Saturday.”
