There is something special about coaches who take on the task of high school sports. They are the Admirals of the sports world as we know it, they are the leaders who turn our young kids into aspiring adults that are ready to take on the opportunities that the world has to offer. Recently I was given the opportunity to interview one of these very "Admirals" who is also a graduate of Rankin High School, Coach Jeffrey Jones from Marfa.
JJSS: What is your football philosophy?
Coach Jones: I
like to run the ball a lot and keep it on the ground, and wait the time out and
make the game as short as possible. When
we played 11 man I liked to pass the ball a lot, its different plays and
thinking now that we are playing 6 man.
JJSS: Is it a huge difference going from 11 man to
6 man as far as strategy and plays?
Coach Jones: Yes,
I would be lying if I said it wasn’t. It was challenging, how you attack the
game in practice is the most challenging thing about it. It’s such a different
game and so open field, you really change the way you practice more than
anything. During practice you still run, you pass, you charge and you tackle. The things
you focus on with 6 man is totally different.
Photo taken by Fred Martinez
JJSS: What is your typical practice day like?
Coach Jones: Typical
practice has the team going out to warm up, we like to do things in stations
and rotate. We will have about four different things going on; open field
tackling, all different types of blocking.
The team gets into their stations, when we blow the whistle the kids know to start
working. Each player gets to rotate through different training strategies. We are lucky enough to have four coaches, that
helps out a lot, we are fortunate because that is better than what most 6 man teams have.
Photo taken by Fred Martinez
JJSS: How many different
schools did you play as an 11 man team?
Coach Jones: We
started out playing Permian’s JV team, then on to Wink, Mc Camey, Iraan and Van
Horne, these were all in our district. When we went to six man we played a
b teams that we used to play against when they were 6 man; teams like Rankin, Ft. Davis, Garden City and
Sanderson. It’s been fun to renew those
rivalries.
Photo taken by Fred Martinez
JJSS: What was your most memorable moment as a
coach?
Coach Jones: That
would be when I was coaching in Crane and won two state championships in track,
in 2004 and 2006. Those were a lot of fun and it stuck in my memory. I would also have to say coaching
my first game here as a football coach in Marfa back in 2010 that is pretty memorable
also.
Above pictured is Jeffrey Jones playing basketball in High School.
JJSS: In your years of coaching do you think you
have touched many lives and are those memories worth more than any win to you?
Coach Jones: Yes,
of course. I really hope that I have helped kids along the way. I still stay in touch with many of the kids
through FaceBook. Technology has really opened the door from when my dad was
coaching years ago. I feel that social media has
been great, it’s helped me keep in touch with all the kids I have coached and
taught. It’s great to be able to see how they have grown and turned into great
parents and wonderful people in the community.
It is a really great feeling when these kids come back and tell you “Thank
you” and “You’re the best”, it really makes your job as a teacher and coach
that much more rewarding.
Jeffrey Jones Rankin High School football Photo
JJSS: How do you handle criticism from fans?
Coach Jones: I don’t
tend to hear very much of it being out on the field, but my wife does. I haven’t really heard too much of it myself,
I never have turned around and made eye contact with anyone who was voicing
their opinion. I m sure it’s out there,
I know that of course we all do it when we are watching sports on TV. My thought is is that it happens and you don’t really need thick
skin, all you need is earplugs. When I’m
coaching the game I am just as much into it as my players are and I don’t pay
any attention really to the audience around us. In that respect I don’t hear it when they say “good job coach” either. What has helped is that I have an open
door policy so that parents can come up with their concerns and it’s always
been very positive. I have never had a negative situation with a parent so that
speaks volumes in itself.
Photo taken by Fred Martinez
JJSS: How do you gain the trust of not just your
players, but also the trust of the parents?
Coach Jones: My
main concern is that the players trust my judgment during game time. What I worry
about is the trust between the parents and the players. You have to gain the trust of your players by
being fair to them and above all you don’t ever lie to them. When they see that you are honest and looking out for them they
come around and they know that they can trust you. You have to treat all the kids the same,
usually when the parents see how you treat the kids and how the kids react to
you, the parents then give you their support.
JJSS: What roles do the athletic director and the
principle play in your athletic program?
Coach Jones: I actually
am the athletic director, so that helps. The principle is very supportive, as
far as the football program he knows I am all about academics first, so we never
butt heads on that subject. I teach two
math classes and that has been a great help. If the principle sees that you are a good teacher he is going to
support you in all you do throughout the year and on the football field. If the kids are slipping in academics we get
them the help that they need to bring their grades up.
Photo taken by Fred Martinez
JJSS: How do you help these kids who might be
having academic struggles?
Coach Jones: We
have different ways of helping, every coach in our school teaches an educational
subject. We have one that teaches English, one teaches social studies, one
teaches science and I teach math. Between us we have the ability to tutor
covered. Sometimes you have kids who are
lagging behind due to laziness but we take care of that out on the field with practice
and game time.
Photo taken by Fred Martinez
JJSS: In the off season what is your conditioning
routine like?
Coach Jones: Since
we are such a small school our kids are rarely in an off season, they go straight
from football to basketball and straight into track and golf. What we do is lift weights twice a week in
every season the kids play, of course we have some that may play football but
not basketball, so the kids who don’t play we get them lifting weights for
times a week to keep them physically fit and their endurance up. The kids always stay conditioned, and I do
stress the importance of track to the kids.
I’m passionate about track; it’s a great work out and keeps our players
conditioned. We also stress the
importance of healthy eating, getting adequate sleep and staying active.
Jeffrey Jones Rankin High School Track
JJSS: What is your opinion of multi sport athletes?
Coach Jones: I
love it; I think that is what school sports are intended for, it’s to have fun. If a kid enjoys playing all these sports then
they need to play. I’m not a specialized coach, I’m not out there to just get
these kids into college level it’s not realistic. Football should be educational, not an area to develop pro or scholarship players. Approximately 1% of all the kids that play a sport in this country get a tryout to play on a professional sports team and in all reality the percentages of kids who
will get scholarships are really small. Every kid needs to be able to have the
opportunity to play whatever sport or sports that they find interesting. That is what these sports are for; they are there
for the kids. We do have some kids who
only want to play one sport and that’s great too. Our goal is to have these kids enjoy high
school.
Photo taken by Fred Martinez
JJSS: What role does football have in your school?
Coach Jones: The
cool thing about football is that it starts off the school year and rolls on
through throughout the year, and of course its Texas and everyone loves their
football!
Photo taken by Fred Martinez
JJSS: Why did you select coaching as a profession?
Coach Jones: I
grew up in it, my grandfather was a coach, my dad was a coach, my mom was also
a coach until they started having children and they figured out that having two
coaches in one household might be a little too much stress. With that being said it coaching was the only
thing I could see myself doing. I have a
minor in math and I’m sure I could be making really good money somewhere with
that degree I just can’t see myself doing anything else, nor do I want to do
anything else. I never thought about
going into the oilfield, I know I wouldn’t be as happy doing anything as I
am coaching.
JJSS: What does your family think about you being a
coach?
Coach Jones: My
mom and dad are very supportive of me and my brother, my brother is a coach in
Wink. I really think it may not have been their dream for us to be in the
educational profession but they see that it’s our passion and what we love
doing. They knew that that was what we were going to do, they never tried to
sway us away from becoming coaches and I’m pretty sure they wanted us to think
about medical school or some other type of degree just as any parent would.
Jeffrey Jones and future wife
Jeffrey Jones and his brother
JJSS: Coach Jones thank you for taking the time to interview with us and share a bit about your life as a coach. It was truly a pleasure and we wish you much success in the future!
Jeffrey Jones Rankin High School State Track Meet
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