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| Pat Jones | |
|---|---|
| Name | Pat Jones |
| Occupation | Football player, coach, manager |
| Birth date | 1947 |
| Birth place | Pittsburgh |
| Nationality | American |
Pat Jones was an American collegiate football player and coach notable for his contributions to Oklahoma State University and the broader landscape of Division I athletics. Over a multi-decade career he influenced programs through talent development, strategic defenses, and administrative leadership, forging connections with major figures and institutions in Big Eight Conference and Big 12 Conference history. His tenure intersected with prominent coaches, rival programs, and postseason bowl competitions, leaving a legacy recognized by conference honors and institutional awards.
Born in Pittsburgh in 1947, Jones grew up amid the post-war expansion of American collegiate athletics and the rise of televised sports exemplified by broadcasts on ABC and NBC. He attended high school in Pennsylvania before enrolling at Iowa State University, where he played under coaching staffs influenced by schemes popularized in the Midwestern United States during the 1960s. Jones completed a bachelor's degree at Iowa State and later pursued graduate studies while beginning his coaching apprenticeship, networking with assistants who went on to staff programs at Nebraska, Colorado, and Kansas State. His formative education connected him with coaching trees that included figures from the Big Eight Conference era and strategies deployed in the Cotton Bowl Classic and Orange Bowl.
As a collegiate player at Iowa State, Jones played on teams competing in the Big Eight Conference and faced opponents such as the Oklahoma Sooners, Nebraska Cornhuskers, and Missouri Tigers. His playing style and positional experience informed later defensive philosophies used against programs like Texas Longhorns and Colorado Buffaloes. Jones participated in intercollegiate matchups that attracted scouts from professional organizations including the National Football League and the Canadian Football League, and he maintained professional contacts with alumni active in the American Football Coaches Association and postseason selection processes for bowls such as the Fiesta Bowl and Sugar Bowl.
Jones began his coaching career as an assistant with stops at institutions like Tulsa and Northwestern State, learning defensive schemes and recruiting practices that later proved influential at larger programs. He joined the staff at Oklahoma State University–Stillwater where he progressed from position coach to defensive coordinator and ultimately head coach, overseeing squads that competed in the Big Eight Conference and, following conference realignment, the Big 12 Conference. During his tenure he recruited and developed athletes who earned recognition from organizations such as the Associated Press and the United States Football Writers Association, and he guided teams to appearances in postseason games like the Holiday Bowl and the Alamo Bowl.
Jones' managerial duties extended to program administration, scheduling non-conference matchups with programs such as the Miami Hurricanes, Penn State, and Ohio State Buckeyes to enhance strength of schedule metrics used by the Bowl Championship Series and later the College Football Playoff selection committees. His staffs included coordinators who later held roles at Oklahoma and Texas A&M, and he mentored assistants who became head coaches at institutions within the Southeastern Conference and the Pac-12 Conference. Jones' approach to recruiting navigated NCAA regulations and compliance frameworks overseen by the National Collegiate Athletic Association.
Jones married and raised a family in Oklahoma, engaging with community institutions such as local chapters of the United Way and supporting youth athletics programs linked to area high schools and Junior College Athletic Association feeder systems. He maintained professional relationships with former players who pursued careers in coaching at programs like Central Michigan and Marshall, as well as those who transitioned into broadcasting with networks such as ESPN and CBS Sports. Outside of football, Jones participated in alumni activities at Iowa State University and contributed to foundation events benefiting student-athlete support initiatives tied to the NCAA Foundation.
Throughout his career Jones accumulated honors from conference organizations and civic groups, including recognition by the Big 12 Conference and induction into regional halls associated with Oklahoma State University athletics. His teams produced All-Americans acknowledged by the Football Writers Association of America and the National Football Foundation, and several of his former assistants and players were later inducted into various collegiate halls of fame. Jones' influence is cited in histories of rivalries involving Oklahoma State University and University of Oklahoma, in analyses of defensive development within the Big Eight Conference, and in retrospectives on bowl appearances involving the Cotton Bowl Classic and the Sun Bowl. His career remains a subject in institutional archives at Oklahoma State University–Stillwater and in oral histories collected by organizations such as the College Football Hall of Fame.
Category:American football coaches Category:Oklahoma State Cowboys football coaches