College football Jonas played
college football at
Penn State University. His first season was 1958, and he did not play (was red-shirted) in 1959. In 1960, as a running back, he ran 49 times for 238 yards (4.9 yard average) and two touchdowns. He also caught six passes, completed 3 of 7 passes, intercepted three opponent passes and returned seven punts. In 1961, he gained 149 yards in 31 attempts (4.8 average) and caught five passes, scoring two touchdowns. He also returned punts and kickoffs. Proving to be a versatile player, he was selected by the
NFL's Philadelphia Eagles in the 13th round (182nd overall) of the
1961 NFL draft. His time with the Eagles was very short. He played in only one game in the 1962 season. Coincidentally, his
Penn State quarterback
Peter Liske would also go on to star in the
CFL, playing against Jonas and himself winning the
CFL's Most Outstanding Player Award in 1967.
Minor-league football Jonas turned to minor league football after his brief stint in the
NFL; in the 1960s, the days before big player salaries, this was a viable option for a football player. Both minor-league teams and the
CFL offered Jonas playing time and competitive money. • 1963 – His first season was with the
Harrisburg Capitols of the
Atlantic Coast Football League. He started as a receiver, catching 20 passes for 422 yards, but when the quarterback was injured, Jonas stepped behind the center, completing 112 of 233 passes for 1649 yards (11 touchdowns, 14 interceptions) as well as running for another 455 yards. His team had 8 wins, 3 losses and 1 tie, and Jonas was named the league's Most Valauable Player. He also handled kicking duties, as he would for his entire career. • 1964 – Injuries slowed Jonas down, and he only completed 94 of 204 passes for 1264 yards (13 touchdowns, 16 interceptions). Harrisburg was 4–10. • 1965 – Jonas moved to the
Newark Bears of the
Continental Football League, where another
CFL's Most Outstanding Player Award winner,
Tom Wilkinson, would play with the
Toronto Rifles. Even though his team was 5–9, Jonas had a huge year, hitting 206 of 437 passes for 3268 yards, with 26 touchdowns and 31 interceptions. • 1966 to 1969 – The
Newark Bears moved to become the
Orlando Panthers, and won 12, 11, 10 and 10 games in those seasons with Jonas at quarterback, winning the championship in 1967 and 1968 and losing in the final in 1966. Jonas was the league MVP each season from 1966 to 1968. His biggest year, in 1967, saw him throw 407 passes, hitting 203 of them for 3446 yards and 41 touchdowns, with 21 picks. His career minor league stats were 1032 completions in 2085 attempts for 17,183 yards and 171 touchdowns and 130 interceptions, with 4 MVP awards. His only weakness was his somewhat low completion percentage. In 1967, the
American Football League’s
Denver Broncos, under
Lou Saban, offered him a contract, but Jonas declined the opportunity; Orlando, then paying quite high salaries for a minor league team, also offered Jonas a virtual guarantee of playing time with a winning franchise, something he could not be assured as a backup on the only team in the AFL that up to that point had been a perennial loser. In 1970, the Panthers, financially strapped because of the high salaries they were paying Jonas and other members of the team, were sold to an ownership group unwilling to maintain the pricey talent their predecessors had, and Jonas was fired. At age 31, with no NFL experience, Jonas determined that the
Canadian Football League offered him the best opportunity to continue his football career. • 1983 - Induction into the American Football Association's Semi Pro Football Hall of Fame 1983
Canadian Football League Jonas’ first season in the
Canadian Football League, 1970, was with the
Toronto Argonauts, where he was teamed up with
Tom Wilkinson. His 124 completions, 256 passes for 2041 yards (and 17 touchdowns versus 25 ints) did not help the 8-6 team win the Grey Cup as the Argos lost to the eventual Grey Cup champion Montreal Alouettes 16–7 in the divisional semi-final. Moving to the Western Division with the
Winnipeg Blue Bombers in 1971, he hit 253 of 485 passes for a stunning 4036 yards with 27 touchdowns and 31 interceptions. Jonas won the
CFL's Most Outstanding Player Award. He would play two more full seasons for the Bombers before being traded midway through the 1974 season to the
Hamilton Tiger-Cats for their quarterback,
Chuck Ealey. His 12,291 passing yards is fifth best for a franchise that has many great quarterbacks. None of Jonas’ CFL teams, however, would get to the
Grey Cup championship with him at the helm. His final CFL totals are 977 completions on 1930 attempts for 15064 yards and 98 touchdowns versus 130 interceptions. ==Coaching career==