Jones high on SMU's list

Harry · February 28, 2004

American coach Jones high on SMU's list

Feb. 27, 2004

By Gregg Doyel

SportsLine.com Senior Writer

Tell Gregg your opinion!

Now that he has fired Mike Dement, SMU athletic director Jim Copeland will undertake a national search that figures to have a distinct American flavor.

As in American coach Jeff Jones.

Jones was the last men's basketball coach hired by Copeland, and he could be the next, too. At American, Jones has turned around a program that went 7-20 in his 2000-01 debut. The past three seasons American has gone 49-38, including 28-13 in the Patriot League.

Copeland, who inherited Dement when he left Virginia in 1995 for SMU, hired Jones at Virginia in 1991. The year Copeland left for SMU, Jones went 25-9 and reached the Elite Eight. Over the next three seasons, a series of off-court mistakes by Jones' players led to his downfall.

Jones' work at American, including the Patriot League's 2002 regular-season championship, has returned his name to the "hot young coach" status he had when Copeland hired him in 1991. Jones, 29 at the time, now is 42.

SMU is 10-15 this season, only the second losing season in 10 years for Dement, whose record at the school was 138-120. The Mustangs never went to an NCAA Tournament with Dement, who was fired with three games left on the schedule.

February 28, 2004

Man... I thought you were talking about Johnny Jones... whew...

NT80 · February 28, 2004

Thanks Harry, I just screamed at my computer!

Edited February 28, 2004 by NT80

emmitt01 · February 28, 2004

Harry, I'm going to assume you didn't title this thread the way you did in order to give me a coronary (though I have my suspicions). Ok, no pepper spray for you.

DeepGreen · February 28, 2004

Very, very funny Harry. <_

greenjoe · February 28, 2004

me too

greenjoe · February 28, 2004

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