J.J. Jones is excited his time to formally begin his North Carolina football career has arrived.

The 3-star wide receiver from Myrtle Beach, SC, has wanted this for a long time, and now it’s here. He will be among 12 members of UNC’s recruiting class of 2021 enrolling early this weekend. The class is ranked No. 17 in the nation, which is an especially high rating considering it has just 18 members.

At 6-foot-4 and 190 pounds, Jones is rated the No. 3 overall prospect in the state of South Carolina and is No. 62 nationally at his position, which is loaded across the country in this class.

Jones committed to UNC on May 21 of last year, telling THI before revealing his decision, "It was one of those things that you just feel deep down in your heart that it’s the right place.”

UNC Coach Mack Brown had plenty of positive things to say about Jones during his signing day press conference last month. At the time, Jones was undecided if he would enroll early, as he was a member of Myrtle Beach High School’s basketball team, but a few days after signing day he decided to join the football program and start college early.

“He’s got the real length that you love at wide receiver for an outside guy…,” Brown said. “He’s got the length, he’s got the speed… Gives you some advantages in the red zone with height.”

THI caught up with Jones a couple of days ago to see how he’s doing as his time at UNC is almost here:

THI: How excited are you to start your UNC career?

JONES: “Super excited. It’s truly a dream come true. Always envisioned myself playing college football, and now the time is here.”

THI: What have you been doing these last few weeks to get ready before you enroll?

JONES: “I’ve just been trying to mentally prepare myself for this brand new setting. College is way different than high school. The game of football is faster and the academic side is more advanced.”

THI: What’s your thoughts on being a member of this highly ranked class of 2021 group?

JONES: “It’s an honor. We got great players coming in who are really talented and hard workers.”

THI: What do you think of how the Tar Heels played over the last month, especially the win at Miami and then against Texas A&M in the Orange Bowl?

JONES: “It put the whole college football world on notice, that UNC is bound to be CFP contender and is a program that has a lot of momentum right now.”

THI: What current UNC player are you excited to play with and why?

JONES: “Sam Howell and Beau Corrales. Beau and I basically play the same position, so while he is here, I hope to learn as much as possible from him to continue to grow my game. And Sam because he’s a very intelligent QB that I get to catch from.”