Jon Alston attended Loyola High School in Shreveport, Louisiana. He began his career as a running back his freshman year. As a sophomore he played free safety, middle linebacker, and tight end, earning first team all-district honors. As a junior, Alston earned first team all-district honors for the second consecutive year. As a senior he totaled 134 tackles, including 21 tackles for loss on his way to first team all-city, all-district, and all-state honors. He was also named first team academic all-state for his performance in the classroom. He was considered to be one of the best linebacker prospects in the south and accepted a scholarship to Stanford where he sat out the 2001 season as a redshirt freshman. He spent the 2002 season primarily as a backup linebacker and special teams player. He did start five games later in the year, finishing with 30 tackles, 2 sacks and 1 forced fumble on the year. As a sophomore he once again served as a reserve linebacker, totaling 21 tackles and 3 sacks on the season. He earned a starting job as a senior, racking up career highs in tackles (62), sacks (9), interceptions (1), and forced fumbles (3), on his way to second team all-pac ten honors. Alston finished out his career with another good season as a senior, totaling 52 tackles, 6 sacks, 1 interception, and 3 forced fumbles.

Jon Alston is an undersized linebacker who is extremely athletic. He is an intelligent, instinctive player who makes plays all over the field. He is a solid tackler and an extremely hard hitter. He is a good pass rusher who totaled 15 sacks over the past two seasons. His tremendous speed (4.40) allows him to cover most tight ends and running backs coming out of the backfield. Jon Alston lacks ideal size for an NFL linebacker. He has trouble shedding blocks of larger offensive linemen and he may need to bulk up and increase his strength to be as effective at the professional level. His athleticism and ball skills make him a candidate to move to safety if he isn’t able to make it as a linebacker. He should contribute immediately as a special teams player and could develop into a good safety or weakside linebacker for the team that drafts him. His excellent combine performance has him moving up draft boards and he could be selected late on the first day or early on the second day of the 2006 NFL draft.