There was a moment in the build-up to Louisville City’s opening goal from last weekend’s win against North Carolina FC where defender Josh Jones took the following touch:
It’s an unspectacular instant at face value, but it says everything about the rookie defender. Jones is a 6’5” rock that, at a glance, could easily be written off as a physical dueler. Instead, he’s doing a bit of everything in a LouCity back line that requires complete performances.
In the screenshot above, the 22-year-old knows exactly when to push ahead. Louisville has pinned North Carolina back, but they’re vulnerable to a counter attack as the ball comes loose. Here, though, Jones steps up to maintain territorial control and give his side the chance to score a go-ahead goal. While Jones is often the deepest-seated player in what becomes a no-holds-barred 1-3-6 attacking shape, he’s also good for 3.1 recoveries per game because of interventions like this.
Jones is a University of Louisville product and was drafted by Real Salt Lake in 2023 but opted to stay in school. In 2024, he was named USL League Two’s Defender of the Year with the Ocean City Nor'easters, sharing the pitch with other players like Jansen Miller (Sporting Kansas City) and Bryce Meredith (Spokane Velocity) that were destined for the pros. This winter, Jones elected to stay close to his college stomping grounds, and he entered the Championship season as a presumptive rotation piece for Danny Cruz.
That Jones would become a first-choice option was far from a guarantee. Even with Wes Charpie departing after five seasons in Kentucky, Louisville had three star-level center backs ahead of the ex-Nor’easter on the depth chart.
As a result, the defender’s first start didn’t come until April 26th against League One competition in the Jagermeister Cup. In an Open Cup match shortly thereafter, wingback Aiden McFadden moonlighted as a starting center half, preferred to a natural center back like Jones.
The sea change came at the end of June. With Arturo Ordonez out of the squad for three consecutive games, Jones was given the chance to stake his claim on a starting spot. Across those 270 minutes, Louisville allowed just one goal. Their rookie defender racked up 18 clearances while winning 14 duels on an 82% success rate amidst that lockdown stretch.
The level hasn’t dropped off since. Across 460 league minutes, Jones occupies rarified air in terms of his aerial dominance and run-of-play interventions. No other defender in the USL is putting up two takeaways and four successful headers per match; Jones is doing so by a comfortable margin.
A natural right-footer, the Pennsylvania native has split time between the central and right-sided spots within Louisville’s back three. While not as inspired as an all-time ball-moving defender like Sean Totsch, Jones’ mature passing decisions make him a solid option at either spot. The 22-year-old is exceeding his expected completion rate by a sterling +3.4% in the middle and attacking thirds – he’s safe at the back and genuinely additive further upfield.
In an attacking sense, Jones’ most important skill is his long throw. Louisville is the USL’s premier set-piece team and has been for years – they’re +136 in set-piece situations since 2020, 31% better than any other club – but they’ve never had a throw-in threat quite like Jones. Those scenarios are increasingly important at the Championship level, meaning that the first-year defender is adding an entirely new (and vital) component to the mix.
Jones tends to take those throws even when he’s playing centrally, and he’s got the requisite athleticism to make up any lost distance in defensive recovery situations. That physical maturity, a gift for body positioning, is one of the key factors that elevates the rookie from a classic “big guy” into a premium USL center back.
Here, you’re seeing Jones matched up one-on-one against Lexington’s Michael Adedokun. Those two actually squared off when Adedokun was at Ohio State in a match where the Buckeye was, portentously, held without a shot. On loan in Lexington this year, Adedokun has become a crucial attacking piece, one of just 11 players to beat opponents on the dribble 20 times or more in Championship play.
Here, though, Adedokun can barely get a touch. As Lexington works toward the sideline and draws LouCity’s right wingback upfield, Jones is put into a one-on-one against the star winger. Whereas most defenders would get beat on the ensuing through ball, Jones sticks close to his mark and keeps a hand on his back. When the pass is released, Jones uses his frame to stay in front of Adedokun and stifle his momentum before he can fully accelerate.
Though the sequence ends in a corner kick when the ball dies at the endline, it’s still a representative bout of defending. Jones knows how to make his presence felt to limit danger, turning a race into a rumble. Here, it halts Lexington’s momentum and allows the rest of the LouCity defense to keep their shape without being forced into rotation.
To see Louisville defending in a lower block as above is somewhat rare; their speciality is tilting the pitch and denying opponents from ever advancing that far. Long passing and a fearsome counterpress are key factors that make it happen, but the ability for the LouCity to head long restarts back from whence they came is equally important.
It’s a virtuous cycle: Louisville forces opponents to go long 16% of the time (fourth-highest in the USL), trusts on their center backs to reject those hoofs, and then restarts the pressing that forced a long ball in the first place.
As a cog in that well-oiled machine, Jones is already elite. We touched upon the rookie’s uniquely strong header numbers already, but it’s worth noting that Jones is winning an absolutely unreal 81% of his aerial duels. That’s historically high, underpinning and even enhancing a key component of the Louisville system.
Here, you’re seeing a very basic restart play take shape. Lexington goes long, and even though the pass is aimed centrally, Jones is tasked with cutting over from a right-sided deployment and going to war with the opposing striker. Behind him, McFadden drops in, helping to re-create the usual back three in support of Jones.
Jones wins this challenge with a high-arching header, preventing Lexington from generating a useful knockdown. The hosts can’t stake their claim in the attacking zone, and there won’t be an immediate second-ball situation with space to exploit. Instead, Lexington is repelled and forced to make up ground from within their own half – exactly how Louisville wants it to be.
Jones is an aerial menace, but his game goes so much further than that. The rookie is adept at stepping ahead to recover and maintain possession. His throw-ins add a new dimension to Louisville’s set piece menagerie. He’s versatile and athletic enough to cover multiple defensive spots. And yes, on top of all that, he might be the best header of the ball in the USL.
These might be the early days of Josh Jones’ career, but he’s got the tools to become a stalwart at Lynn Family Stadium for years to come.
Cover Photo Credit: Louisville City FC / Twitter
That’s our Josh… way to go, man!!
We’re going to miss him when Europe comes calling