Former Wolverine Great Accepts Coaching Position with Hokies
By: Garrett Mitchell, Staff Writer
Derek Jones is heading back east.
Jones, an all-time great running back for Coach Willie Varner at Woodruff from 1989 to 1991, has been a successful college football coach for two decades. Jones is now on the move again after accepting a position on the staff of new Virginia Tech University head football coach Brent Pry.
After several seasons serving as the secondary coach, associate head coach, and co-defensive coordinator at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Jones found an excellent opportunity to move back closer to home while working with one of his oldest friends in the coaching business.
“Brent Pry is one of my best friends in the coaching profession,” explained Jones. “I talked to him a few weeks ago, not knowing he would get the head coaching job at Virginia Tech. He texted me and told me he had interviewed and if he got the job, would I like to join him? There was no hesitation, and I told him yes.”
Pry, who previously served as the defensive coordinator at Penn State University under Coach James Franklin, was offered and accepted the position as the Hokies’ head man. One of his first calls was to Jones.
“It was a no-brainer (to accept the job),” Jones said. “I can come back to a recruiting area that I’m used to and to a school with a rich football tradition. I’m glad to be a part of that myself.”
Jones will continue to coach the secondary for the Hokies and will be a crucial member of Pry’s staff. Still, his duties were not quite finished in Lubbock after his hiring. Jones continued to coach with the Red Raiders through their bowl game against Mississippi State Bulldogs and spent several weeks jetting between Texas and Virginia.
“It was a total whirlwind working both jobs,” he said. “I was getting to know everyone at Virginia Tech while still preparing to coach in the bowl game. It’s been a crazy time.”
Jones said he will always cherish his time in Lubbock and the players he coached who have helped revive the Texas Tech program. Coaching in the bowl game, he said, was as much for their benefit as it was for his.
“You just can’t walk from great young men like that without closure,” Jones said. “For a lot of them, it was their first time in a bowl game in their college careers, and that was a big deal for them and me.”
Now, Jones can turn his attention full time to Virginia Tech. Excitement is high in Blacksburg, and Hokie fans are anxiously awaiting the fruits of their new coaching staff’s labor. Virginia Tech has a storied culture and passionate fan base, and Jones said the opportunities for success abound at his new coaching home.
“I’m really excited for the future of Virginia Tech football,” added Jones. “We just signed the highest-rated class in Virginia Tech history, and the potential is limitless. Having coached at Duke, I know the potential of Virginia Tech. They have a national brand that attracts talented young people there.”
