A Tampa dental student is heading to HBO Max’s ‘FBoy Island’

Mia Emani Jones didn’t come across what she was on the lookout for in the Tampa Bay courting pool.

So, the 26-yr-previous Tampa woman headed to “Fboy Island” to develop her options.

Jones will seem on the next period of HBO Max’s actuality courting present, which debuts July 14. The premise: 3 women embark on a mission to discover appreciate among two forms of adult males — self-explained “nice guys” and “fboys.”

For the uninitiated, an fboy is a player. A person who would seem charming right until he leaves your messages on study, cheats on you with your friend, or is just all close to scummy. Specifically 50 percent of the 26 qualified bachelors on “Fboy Island” assert this label, and if one particular of them is picked by a single woman, he could get dwelling the total $100,000 in prize income. If a great dude helps make it to the end, he’ll split the earnings with his new beau. The bachelorettes — and comic-turned-host Nikki Glaser — have no thought who is who.

Jones, a dental student and prior Pass up Delaware winner, was optimistic as she jetted off to Cabo for filming before this calendar year.

In advance of the premiere, Jones chatted on the cellular phone with the Tampa Bay Moments about fboy taming, her most loved spots to locate romance and how the “Fboy Island” solid in comparison to the neighborhood courting scene.

How did you get on “FBoy Island”?

My father actually is a big enthusiast, and that’s how I located out about the demonstrate in the initially location. He told me, ‘You must go on the show. You hardly ever know what’s gonna materialize.’ And then I had a casting agent reach out to me. I stuffed out some paperwork, went to L.A., did interviews in entrance of the executive producers, came residence, felt like they forgot about me and then a couple months later on, they known as me and mentioned they desired me on the display.

What was your system heading to the island, primarily soon after looking at the first period with your father?

I went there for like. I went there to locate a genuine link. So to me, it does not matter their status, like if they are an fboy or a pleasant man. I just want another person to like me for me and I can tame an fboy if I need. My mother did it with my father, so it’s in my blood.

How did your mom do it?

Effectively, a tiny backstory is that my dad was the quarterback in significant college and in college or university. My mom was the head cheerleader. I really don’t know substantially but I have a sensation stuff went down in school. And from there, my mom and dad have now been married for 26 years and they are nevertheless married. And my father just worships the ground my mom walks on.

Did it audio like your father saw any of himself in the guys onscreen?

I assume so. When we ended up observing the initially year, he would sit there and be like, ‘He’s an fboy.’ I was like, ‘What in the globe, can you inform me why?’ And that man or woman would get removed and he’d go, ‘I explained to you so.’

With the other two women, how were you performing together to guess who had been the awesome guys and who had been the fboys?

In essence, “Fboy Island” was our daily life for two months. You didn’t have a cell phone and you did not have WiFi. We could not check out their social media at all. So we never know who these men basically are. We would place our heads collectively soon after filming, like ‘What do you feel? I never know, they all look terrible to me.’ We grew to become like sisters because we would convey to each individual other all the things. That experience together was excellent, since we had been like very little detectives. I imagine 99% of the time we had been proper.

How did the plan of possible prize funds have an impact on the course of action?

It did not increase any tension for me. I generally went there for enjoy, so it actually didn’t matter. As lengthy as I followed my coronary heart and I stayed correct to myself, then the cash wasn’t a big element. Yeah, it was there in the back of my head, like, ‘No, really do not like him! He could possibly be an fboy. Keep in mind, he can just take the full $100,000.’ I’m sitting there and I’m like, ‘Oh, I’m just going to go with my coronary heart as a substitute of my head even even though my dad instructed me not to.’

It’s 50/50 fboy and nice guy split when you go on the island. How does that evaluate to the Tampa Bay courting scene?

Oh my goodness, it is the exact. It’s like all the guys know just about every other. I do not know how, but every person in Tampa is aware each other or understands their uncle’s brother’s cousin or some thing, and it is peculiar. That was weird [on the show] obtaining the men know that you are taking other fellas on a day and they dwell in the identical home.

You want the nice man. You have the guy which is most likely an fboy. You have the guy that just straight up is an fboy. You have the guy who’s like, in among and you just don’t know. You have people that appear like they are not fboys and they are. It’s Tampa Bay on an island, and in a scaled-down environment.

What are your favorite date spots close to Tampa Bay?

I have to say 1 of them is Datz. I imply, the mac burger is so great. And I love the Rusty Pelican in Clearwater. It is great on the drinking water. And then if they want to go a lot more of a bash scene, @260very first in St. Pete. I’m essentially a single of their bottle girls there when I sense like it. It’s just a enjoyment environment. And then McDinton’s. Guy, McDinton’s.