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Keeping up with the Joneses

By Scott Rex

One would have to forgive Butch Jones if his memory of the first week of 2007 is slightly hazy.

In a span of five days, Jones helped lead West Virginia University to a thrilling come-from-behind 38-35 win over Georgia Tech in the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, Florida (January 1), was present for the birth of his third son in Morgantown, West Virginia (January 3), and was introduced as CMU’s new head football coach during a press conference on campus in Mount Pleasant (January 5).

To say the experience was a whirlwind would be an understatement.

“It was an emotional roller coaster,” Jones says. “But looking back, I enjoyed every minute of the process. The only disappointment I have is that my wife was not able to experience the Gator Bowl. Everything happened extremely fast.”

Now, nearly eight months later, Jones is preparing to lead a team into the regular season as a head coach for the first time. He is a familiar face to most Chippewa fans and a number of CMU’s returning players, having served as an assistant at CMU from 1998-2004. He spent the last two seasons at West Virginia, working for one of the most widely respected head coaches in the country in Rich Rodriguez, and helping guide the Mountaineers to back-to-back 11-win seasons, a pair of national top 10 finishes, and victories in the 2006 Sugar Bowl and 2007 Gator Bowl. Jones’s aim is to translate the success he experienced at West Virginia to the football program at CMU.

“I think the No. 1 thing that experience taught me was how to build a football program, not a football team,” Jones says. “You have to establish a mentality and a mindset that runs throughout your program, establish expectations, and hold people accountable to those expectations. It taught me about competitiveness and competing in everything you do on and off the field. And third, it taught me the importance to create a family environment around your program.”

Practice makes perfect

Jones credits Rodriguez and the opportunity to be a part of West Virginia’s nationally prominent program for preparing him for his new role at CMU. But Jones’s two years in West Virginia were not the first time he had experienced success in the coaching profession.

Jones landed an internship with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers while still an undergraduate at Ferris State University, with his responsibilities covering virtually every aspect of a football team and program. His first full-time coaching position was serving as the offensive coordinator at Wilkes University. During his first season, 1993, he directed an offense that led the Middle Atlantic Conference in scoring offense and total offense. Wilkes won a conference title and advanced to the NCAA Division III playoffs that season.
Jones began a three-year stint at his alma mater, Ferris State, in 1995. He was promoted to offensive coordinator in 1996 and managed an attack that led the conference in scoring offense and total offense that season. Ferris won a second straight conference title and advanced to the NCAA Division II Quarterfinals in 1996.

Those experiences, combined with a prior stint as offensive coordinator at CMU (2001-03), have enabled Jones to craft a specific set of expectations that will define his program as a head coach.

“First and foremost we want to graduate all the players who stay in the program,” Jones says. “We must keep in mind that they are student-athletes, and obviously students first. We want to challenge for the Mid-American Conference championship year-in and year-out. We want to have a high level of energy and play like a blue-collar football team – playing hard to the whistle, being disciplined, and having great confidence. We want to put a product on the field that allows every fan, alum, student, and faculty member to be proud to say that they are Central Michigan University Chippewas and proud to wear the maroon and gold.”

Jones and his staff began the process of implementing those expectations during spring practice. The focus of the 15-practice spring camp was putting the Chippewas in high-pressure situations that fostered a high level of competition. At the same time, the coaching staff went out of its way to foster a family atmosphere between the players, coaches, and other support staff involved in the program.

Helping ease Jones’s transition back to CMU was an established relationship with many of the returning upperclassmen from his previous time spent in Mount Pleasant. Jones also helped recruit a number of CMU’s younger players, including returning starters on offense Dan LeFevour and Ontario Sneed.

“It was a benefit,” Jones says. “It made the transition easier because most of the players knew me and knew what they were getting, and the older players were able to ease the minds of the younger kids. I think that familiarity helped greatly.”

A common theme among the coaching staff and players is a loyalty to CMU. Including Jones, seven members of the coaching staff either previously coached or played at CMU, including three (Zach Azzanni, Tim Banks, and Max Glowacki) who were part of Mid-American Conference championship teams during their playing careers at CMU.

“A head coach is only as successful as his staff,” Jones says. “I wanted family oriented people who are very knowledgeable and good teachers. I wanted people I was familiar with, people I knew had a great passion for CMU and know what it is like in our community. The lifeline of a program is recruiting, and if you have a passion for your program that shows during the recruiting process. Our coaches have a great passion for our university and our program.”

CMU: ‘It’s a way of life’

Jones himself has developed a special affinity and respect for CMU – not only the campus, athletics department, and football program, but also the Mount Pleasant community in which he will live with his wife, Barb, and three sons, Alex, 10, Adam, 6, and Andrew, 8 months.

“Whenever you look at a move that affects both your career and your family, you look at a number of things,” Jones says. “Is this a place where I can be successful? What is the support like from the administration? Can I live there – is it a place where I want to raise a family? Then you look into things like the facilities, the alumni, and the academic reputation of the university, so it is an extremely calculated decision. To me, this was a no-brainer on all those factors. CMU has all those qualities that you look for.

“It’s all about people,” he continues. “If you look at the people associated with Central Michigan University, you see great people everywhere. We have one of the best overall situations not only in the MAC, but in the entire country. This is a great community, we have great support, and people love football here – it’s a way of life.”

CMU opens its first season under Jones September 1 at Kansas. The Chippewas’ home opener is slated for September 8 against Toledo, and Jones is counting on the maroon and gold supporters coming out in full force.

“This is a year with great challenges on our schedule,” Jones says. “We will need all the fan support we can get, especially at our home games. Our goal should be to have 30,000 fans at Kelly/Shorts Stadium each week.” •

The Jones family picture. From left, Barb, Andrew, now 8 months; Alex, 10;
and Adam, 6.

Jones, pictured at a practice, starts his CMU head coaching debut September 1 at Kansas.

Showing his fun side, Butch Jones and athletic staff let the fans call the plays during the Spring 2007 intrasquad scrimmage.

Channeling the Chippewas >