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In eight seasons as head coach of the AU men's basketball team, Jeff Jones has engineered one of the most remarkable turnarounds in school history. The transformation of the men's program culminated last season in the Eagles' first-ever appearance in the NCAA Division I Tournament, when Jones led AU to Patriot League Regular Season and Tournament Championships. The Eagles finished the 2007-08 campaign with a 21-12 overall record.
The highlight of an outstanding year was the NCAA Tournament. In the first round matchup in Birmingham, Ala., AU played a tightly contested game against Tennessee, trailing by only one point, 50-49, with six minutes to play before the Volunteers pulled away. American earned its first NCAA appearance with a 52-46 win over Colgate in the Patriot League Championship Game.
The prelude to the tournament appearance was another milestone in the team's transformation, the Eagles' 67-59 victory over regional foe and national basketball powerhouse Maryland in College Park.
"Last year was very gratifying for the school and the program. We intend on building on the momentum that we started last year," commented Jones.
During his tenure at AU, Jones has compiled a record of 125-113 guiding American to three regular-season championships and four appearances in the Patriot League Tournament Championship Game. He has developed 15 players who have been named All-Patriot League, 16 players who have gone on to play professionally, two players who received the Patriot League Rookie of the Year award, Andre Ingram (2004) and Derrick Mercer (2006), and one player, Patrick Doctor, who earned the Patriot League Player of the Year award for the 2001-2002 season. Such success reflects his impeccable basketball pedigree: A star point guard who held the record for assists at the University of Virginia, the Owensboro, Ky., native is a member of the Apollo High School Hall of Fame. He is still the only person to win National Invitation Tournament (NIT) Championships as both a player and coach. It's not an exaggeration to say that basketball is in his blood: his father, Bob, coached Kentucky Wesleyan University, leading the team to the 1973 NCAA Division II title.
One of the most respected teachers in the collegiate ranks, Jones left the University of Rhode Island, where he served as an assistant on Jerry DeGregorio's staff during the 1999-2000 season, to take the helm of American basketball in April 2000. He became the 17th coach in the school's history. In just his second season at AU, Jones led the Eagles to the second-best turnaround in NCAA Division I history, finishing with an 18-12 overall record. The 11-game improvement from 2000-01 was second only to Bob Knight's Texas Tech squad that had a 14-game turnaround. The 18 victories were the highest win total for the program since 1989-90 (a performance the team would repeat in 2003-04), and its first winning campaign since 1990-91.
During the 2001-02 season the Eagles captured the Patriot League regular-season title, fashioning a 10-4 record in the process. The top seed in the league tournament, the Eagles advanced to the championship game, where they fell to Holy Cross, 55-52, before the largest championship crowd in league history, at the time, and just the second sellout in the history of AU's Bender Arena. The game was played in front of a national audience on ESPN. That same season AU gained national recognition with a 77-72 win at Florida State, becoming the first Patriot League school to ever defeat a member of the renowned Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).
During the 2002-03 season, Jones led the Eagles to a victory over cross-town rival George Washington and a regular season win over Holy Cross. The Eagles finished second in the regular season and reached the Patriot League championship game for a second time.
In 2003-04 Jones guided the Eagles to their second Patriot League regular season title in three years and led AU to the Patriot League championship game for the third straight year. AU finished with its third consecutive winning season for the first time in 13 years and had a six-game winning streak for the first time in 14 years. The Eagles earned an invitation to the Rainbow Classic, where they went 2-1, including a win over NCAA tourney team East Tennessee State.
The Eagle Has Landed
Jones also led the Eagles to a winning season in 2004-05, as American finished with a 16-12 record and an 8-6 mark in the Patriot League, good for third place. With the winning record, Jones had guided AU to above-.500 marks in four straight seasons--the first time that had happened since the 1974-75 season, when AU completed a string of five straight winning seasons. Jones's reputation helped the Eagles get invited to the 2004-05 Preseason NIT.
In 2006-07 a resurgent AU team achieved a 16-14 record. The winning record marked a period of nearly unprecedented success at AU, as five of the previous six teams had winning seasons, a record accomplished only four times before in the team's history.
Other notable 2006-07 achievements:
• The Eagles got off to their best start in 17 years with a 7-2 opening mark.
• Jones had a personal highlight with his 100th win at AU when the Eagles knocked off Colgate in a thrilling overtime game.
• American went on to the Patriot League semifinals, where eventual league champ Holy Cross won on a last-second basket.
• Jones joined the exclusive 250-win club.
Other Career Highlights:
• When he became the University of Virginia's eighth head coach at age 29, Jones was the youngest coach in the history of the Atlantic Coast Conference. In eight years at the helm, he compiled a record of 146-104 for a .584 winning percentage. He led Virginia to six postseason appearances (five NCAA, one NIT), one regular-season ACC championship, and four 20-win campaigns. Virginia's win over Virginia Tech during the 1994-95 regular season gave Jones his 100th career victory, making him the second-fastest coach in school history and fifth-fastest in ACC history to accomplish the feat. He also directed the Cavaliers to five of their top six seasons for field-goal percentage defense.
• Virginia made its fifth NCAA Tournament appearance in seven seasons under Jones in 1996-97. Finishing that season with an overall mark of 18-13, the Cavaliers fell to Iowa in a West Region first-round game.
• The 1994-95 season saw Jones lead Virginia to a final mark of 25-9. The program advanced to the NCAA Tournament's Elite Eight and earned a share of its first ACC regular-season crown since 1983. Virginia finished that season ranked eighth in the final CNN/USA Today poll, and 13th in the final Associated Press media poll. Those were the highest final national rankings by a Virginia team since 1983.
• In 1992-93 Jones became the only coach in conference history to win at least 20 games in each of his first three seasons. He led Virginia to a 21-10 record (9-7 ACC) and a trip to the 1993 East Region semifinals in the NCAA Tournament.
• In 1991-92, Jones's Cavaliers posted a 20-13 record and went on to win the NIT championship. As a result, Jones became the first person to win an NIT title as both a player and a coach; he is still the only person to accomplish the feat.
• In his first season as head coach at Virginia, Jones led the 1990-91 squad to a 21-12 overall record. He was the only rookie coach in the nation that year to have his team in the NCAA Tournament.
Before his eight-year run as head coach, Jones was a full-time assistant on Terry Holland's staff at UVa, from 1986 to 1990, a part-time assistant for three seasons, and a graduate assistant for one. During his eight seasons as an assistant, Jones was a part of the Cavaliers' overall record of 162-95 (.630), participating in six NCAA Tournaments while advancing to the Final Four in 1984 and the Final Eight in 1989. Virginia also competed in one NIT during his tenure.
A Big-Time Player
Before his coaching career, Jones made his mark on the national college basketball scene as a player. After starring at Apollo High School in Owensboro, Kentucky, he went on to become point guard for the University of Virginia from 1978-82. As a four-year starter for the Cavaliers, Jones was known as a leader and prolific passer. With Jones directing a potent offense, UVa compiled an overall record of 102-28 (.785) while he led the Cavaliers to two NCAA Tournaments and two NITs. Virginia captured the 1980 NIT title and advanced to the NCAA Final Four in 1981. He graduated from Virginia in 1982 with a bachelor of science degree in psychology.
Jones finished his career as Virginia's all-time assist leader (598) while also setting the single-season record with 200 assists the 1979-80 season. Later, as head coach, he saw both of those records eclipsed by his own player, John Crotty. Jones served as team captain as a senior during the 1981-82 season and played in 129 games during his career. During that time he averaged 6.6 points and 4.6 assists per game while shooting 52.2 percent from the field and 74.3 percent from the free-throw line.
Jones and his wife, Danielle, live in Arlington, Va. He is the father of three children, Meghann, Madison Perry, and Jeffrey Robert.
Year-by-Year Coaching Record
Year School Record Postseason
1990-01 Virginia 21-12 NCAA First Round
1991-92 Virginia 20-13 NIT Champions
1992-93 Virginia 21-10 NCAA Sweet 16
1993-94 Virginia 18-13 NCAA Second Round
1994-95 Virginia 25-9 NCAA Elite 8
1995-96 Virginia 12-15 --
1996-97 Virginia 18-13 NCAA First Round
1997-98 Virginia 11-19 --
2000-01 American 7-20 --
2001-02 American 18-12 --
2002-03 American 16-14 --
2003-04 American 18-13 --
2004-05 American 17-11 --
2005-06 American 12-17 --
2006-07 American 16-14 --
2007-08 American 21-12 NCAA First Round
Record at AU 125-113(.525)
Overall Record 271-217(.555) Seven postseason apps.
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