The Echoes, Notre Dame's annual football awards banquet, took place Friday night on campus and following the ceremony, Irish Illustrated and 247Sports were able to catch up with some of the players about a variety of topics. We spoke with running back Tony Jones Jr., who won the "Back of the Year" award during the event, about what his plans are for his future.

Jones arrived in South Bend as part of the 2016 class and has one year of eligibility remaining. Will he be back in South Bend for a fifth and final year, will he play elsewhere, or will he turn pro?

"No, not really," said Jones, when asked about what his plans are for next year. "I'm just trying to finish the season strong and finish classes good, so I can get my degree... To be honest, I've just got to talk to my family and then talk to the coaches and just see what's good for me."

Before that decision needs to take place, Jones and his Fighting Irish will take on the Iowa State Cyclones in the Camping World Bowl on Dec. 28 and Noon. Notre Dame returns to the practice field on Saturday, as this 10-2 team starts preparation for the matchup with the 7-5 opponent.

"I don't know much really," said Jones with a laugh, when asked about his knowledge of Iowa State. "I'm starting my film study tonight. All I know is they run a 3-4. I know they're a hard team. To be honest, they're like four or five plays away from being a 12-0 team. You can't take them lightly."

Getting to 10 wins was a positive for Notre Dame. The Irish didn't achieve all of their goals this year, as bigger plans were expected, but getting to 11 wins would be something that would mean a great deal to Jones. It would allow everyone to go out on a positive note.

"Just knowing that our season has been good, but we had some downs, we're just trying to finish off with a bang, really," said Jones of what a win vs. Iowa State would mean.

On the year, Jones has rushed 133 times for 722 yards, averaged 5.4 yards per carry, and scored five touchdowns. He also has 103 receiving yards and another score. For his career, Jones has played in 36 games, carried the ball 260 times, rushed for 1,346 yards, averaged 5.2 yards per attempt, and scored 11 touchdowns on the ground.