Landry Jones is already Oklahoma's all-time leading passer, but he has a lot more to accomplish.
That's why Jones announced Thursday he will be returning to Oklahoma for his senior season.
"I want to accomplish the goals that I set before I got here, and there is still a lot more to do," Jones said in a statement on soonersports.com. "I want to make sure I've exhausted every effort in that area. And I want to be a senior. I enjoy being at OU and with my teammates and look forward to graduating with the guys that were in my class when I got here."
The move also allows Jones to remain near his future bride, Oklahoma women's basketball star Whitney Hand. Both are redshirt juniors. The couple got engaged last June.
With NFL size (6-foot-4, 229 pounds), an NFL arm and the experience of playing in an elite program, Jones likely would have been one of the first quarterbacks taken, after Stanford's Andrew Luck and Baylor's Robert Griffin III, in this spring's NFL draft.
He joins USC's Matt Barkley as one of college football's top quarterbacks delaying entry into the NFL for one more season in school.
"I've thought about [playing in the NFL] since I was a little boy," Jones said. "It would be a great honor to play in the NFL, and that goal will still be there when I finish at Oklahoma."
Jones' return makes him one of the early contenders for the 2012 Heisman Trophy and gives Oklahoma a boost toward a national title turn. OU listed just five senior starters – two on offense – for its lineup in the Insight Bowl, a 31-14 win over Iowa.
Jones has passed for 12,389 yards and 93 touchdowns in his OU career. The successor to Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford is 30-8 as a starter, including 3-0 in bowls.
"We're excited that he's coming back to build on what has already been an outstanding career," Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops said. "We expect another great year from him, and like the fact that he's determined to be even better."
Follow Keith Whitmire on Twitter: @Keith_Whitmire
