NORFOLK, VA (WTKR)- A homecoming theme radiated throughout the Big Blue Room at Chartway Arena Friday morning as Old Dominion basketball passed the torch.
Mike Jones was introduced as the Monarchs' next head men's basketball coach to a crowd of family, friends, administrators and fans. He becomes the 14th head coach in the program's history.
"I have prayed for this day for a very long time," Jones told the crowd. "Given the opportunity to be here in front of you today is truly, truly a dream come true."
"He is the total package as a head coach," ODU athletic director Wood Selig added. "He can develop players, he's a great recruiter, the style of play is going to be attractive for fans and players alike, he'll be great in the community."
Jones was officially introduced just four days after Jeff Jones announced his retirement from the position. Things moved quickly once the latter informed his superiors of his decision and Mike Jones was one of a handful of candidates on Old Dominion's list. The two sides held their initial interview Tuesday before the final discussion Thursday morning.
"We had a Zoom at 7:30 AM, about an hour long, and at the end of it, Dr. Selig offered me the job," he recalled. "I'm not sure I let him finish talking before I said yes."
"We had other candidates lined up later in the week," added Selig. "We kind of both looked at ourselves (Selig and school president Dr. Brian Hemphill) and said 'do we really need to search that much further? I think we might have our guy here.'"
Jones was a player for Old Dominion from 1991-1995 and would go on to become one of the top high school coaches in the nation at DeMatha Catholic in Hyattsville, Maryland. After 19 years as the head coach at the school, Jones transitioned to the college ranks as an assistant at Virginia Tech beginning in 2021. He spent this season as an assistant coach on Kevin Willard's staff at Maryland, but no matter where he was, he always had Old Dominion in the back of his mind.
"I was always rooting for [Jeff Jones], I was always willing to be a supporter of ODU, but the day he told me this was going to happen, all those thoughts of me wanting to be the head coach here came back," Jones said.
"He's one of us," pointed out Selig. "He's been on two championship teams at ODU, he's one of the more visible former basketball players at ODU, he had so much support within the community and among our former men's basketball players and among all the alumni at ODU. That is icing on the cake."
He has the full support of his predecessor. Jeff Jones was on hand at Friday's event and said the program is in good hands with its new head coach.
"I'm absolutely comfortable, especially because it's Mike," Jeff Jones said. "The fact that it's somebody who I know and respect and like I think makes it even easier. I think he's going to do a great job."
It will be a busy few weeks for the new head coach. He will finish up his assistant coaching duties at Maryland for the remainder of the season before ending up in Norfolk permanently, but he's already full speed ahead. Jones told onlookers Friday that he has a 30-day plan and a 90-day plan he plans to implement that will help lay the foundation.
"Meeting with our current roster to figure out what our roster will look like going forward and hiring a staff are immediate details that have to be covered," he noted. "Meeting with the staff that we do obtain and getting on the same page of exactly how we're going to attack those 90 days is incredibly important."
Besides the personal connection, there was plenty that made the Old Dominion job desirable to Jones. He pointed to facilities, fan base and academic prowess as factors.
"The facilities here are top-notch, unbelievable, it's a world-class university, the fan base is what it is," Jones noted. "When you talk about what makes this job great, you don't get all three of those things in a Sun Belt school very often. I am incredibly proud to be the head coach."
The current Monarchs wrap up their regular season Friday night at Georgia Southern before next week's Sun Belt Tournament. Jones said he hopes to speak with the current players and staff in the next three to four days.
