Missouri freshman offensive tackle Johnnie Jones receives heart transplant

Missouri offensive tackle Johnnie Jones has received a heart transplant.

Tigers coach Eli Drinkwitz announced Thursday morning that Jones — who also goes by DJ — underwent the procedure Wednesday night and was currently recovering.

“We are incredibly grateful for the medical team who cared for DJ and for the donor and donor family whose extraordinary gift made this possible,” Drinkwitz wrote.

“Please continue to keep DJ, his family, the donor family, and his caregivers in your prayers as he begins the recovery process.”

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“We are incredibly grateful for the medical team who cared for DJ and for the donor and donor family whose extraordinary gift made this possible,” Drinkwitz wrote.

“Please continue to keep DJ, his family, the donor family, and his caregivers in your prayers as he begins the recovery process.”

Drinkwitz said Tuesday that Missouri discovered Jones’ heart problems during its routine freshman intake testing. After monitoring Jones’ heart for two weeks, the team’s medical staff sought a second opinion.

Jones, who is from Venice, Florida, has been at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville and was added to a transplant list. Drinkwitz had said earlier in the week that Jones “needs help in a hurry.”

Wednesday, Drinkwitz had said during his SEC teleconference that Jones was in heart failure and had been hooked up to an extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) machine to help his heart continue to function.

A four-star recruit, Jones was the No. 15 offensive tackle in the high school class of 2026 and committed to Missouri in October of 2025.