Chris Jones didn’t have his sights set on Kemper County High School in particular when there was an opening at the school four years ago. 

In fact, Jones had already interviewed in De Kalb once before without getting the job. There were no hard feelings for the then-Louisville High School assistant football coach, however. In his own words, he just wanted an opportunity to run a program.

“It just all worked out,” Jones recalled. “They’ve always had athletes here, and I was just fortunate to be able to get a good staff to help me, because you’re only as good as your staff. We’ve had some guys who were willing to put in long hours.”

Those long hours translated to wins. After going just 1-10 the season prior to Jones’ arrival, Kemper County amassed a 31-11 over the next three seasons, making the playoffs all three years and even getting to the North State title game in 2014. Now, Jones and the rest of the Wildcats are 14-1, their lone loss coming against Class 6A’s Columbus High School in Week 1. Saturday morning, they will face Charleston High School at Davis Wade Stadium on Mississippi State’s campus to play for the Class 3A crown.

Jones’ impact on the Wildcats’ football program is significant. Traditionally a basketball school, Kemper County has never played for a state title in football. That reality isn’t lost on Jones, though he said he hasn’t allowed himself to get too distracted.

“I’ve kind of been thinking about why it hasn’t hit me yet,” Jones said. “Maybe it’s because I’ve always been kind of calm: never too high, never too low. I know the job isn’t done yet and we still have work to do. To me, the kids follow my lead, so if I come in all gung-ho and loud, I think they’ll react differently because they know that’s not me. I try to be calm, because there will be some moments throughout the game where things might not go your way, so you have to understand the kids are watching and feeding off of you. If you panic, they’ll panic.”

It’s been a process building the program up to a championship contender, but Jones said the formula isn’t complicated.

“The kids bought into the culture of what it takes to win,” Jones said. “They compete year round. In the offseason, we’re in here with the weights and are outside running. In the summertime, we’re out attending camps — and we don’t just go to go, we go to win, because winning is a habit. You always want them to compete at a high level each and every day. We didn’t just wake up and start winning, we worked to win. When hard work meets opportunity, good things happen.” 

FROM PLAYER TO COACH

To understand Jones’ drive to win, it’s best to understand his background. A 2000 graduate of Noxubee County High School, Jones played for then-Noxubee County head coach M.C. Miller as a quarterback. Miller described Jones as a hard worker who excelled no matter what position he played.

“He was a hard worker,” Miller recalled. “He would always hustle with whatever you had him doing. He was a really great quarterback, but he injured his arm as a junior. When he came back, he could throw, but not accurately, so we moved him to receiver — and he was hard to beat. Whatever he would do, he would work hard to be the best.”

After high school, Jones lettered at Jackson State from 2000-2004 as a wide receiver before trying his hand as an undrafted free agent for the Minnesota Vikings’ practice squad. He saw a few active games between 2005-06 before signing with the Seattle Seahawks’ practice squad in 2007. He also had a stint with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League from 2008-09, and he doubled up in 2008 by also playing for the Arena Football League’s Kansas City Brigade. 

Following his professional career, Jones decided he wanted to get into coaching, feeling his college and pro experience combined with his youth would allow him to relate to and earn the respect of younger players.

“Times have changed,” Jones said. “Kids are different. My philosophy right now is, a new generation of players needs a new generation of coaches. I’m 34, but I’ve only been coaching for seven years. I tried to make it in the NFL and bounced around, but I was blessed to even get that far, because along the way you learn so much and meet so many people.”

In particular, Jones said he liked the hands-on coaches he came across the best, and he tries to be hands-on with his players.

“I coach with my cleats on, because I believe in not just telling you what to do but demonstrating and showing you what I mean,” Jones said. “Then I want you to rep it. Hopefully by the third or fourth time you understand what I’m talking about. I just believe these kids learn better by showing them instead of telling them and getting on them, but at the same time, they don’t mind you getting on them after you’ve coached them the right way.”

Miller now coaches at Louisville High School, and Jones joined his staff in 2010 as the wide receivers coach and the junior high head coach for the eighth-grade squad. Miller said Jones’ desire to be hands-on with his players was evident right away.

“If you have some ability, he’s going to try to get that out of you,” Miller said. “If you’re not as good of a player, he’s still going to push you. Whatever they have, he wants to get it out of them.”

Miller also said he’s not surprised at the success Jones is having, because Jones would always go above and beyond to coach his players.

“I knew he would be a head coach one day,” Miller said. “I tried to hire him when he first got out of college, but he went to the NFL for a few years. When he came back home, I tried to get him to come work for me, but he wasn’t ready. When I was coming to Louisville, he called me and said he was ready to work and learn something.

“He’d go to overtime with them. He kept them after school and would work with them. He also learned how to be a speed coach and increase their time.”

SUCCESS AT KEMPER

While the athletes were there, Jones said there wasn’t much else with which to work when he took over in 2013. The current practice field to the right of the gym didn’t exist, and their weight room consisted of just three weight racks.

“Like (the rapper) Drake says, we started from the bottom, but it’s easy to start from the bottom if you have athletes,” Jones said. “If you get them to buy into what it takes to win, you always have a chance to be successful.”

Over time, Kemper County’s weight room expanded, and the Wildcats now have their own practice field. Improvements over the last four seasons have been incremental, Jones said, but he never allowed limitations to be an excuse not to win.

“You can’t make excuses for what you don’t have, because the team over there you’re getting ready to play, they don’t care what you don’t have,” Jones said. “They don’t care about your excuses. You have to make due with what you have.”

Senior wide receiver DJ Clayton has played under Jones for all four seasons of his high school career and said he knew right away Jones was a special coach.

“When I first saw him, I could tell he was very passionate about football,” Clayton said. “I could tell he was about getting better and wanting the best for all of us. He just stepped in and changed the program, taught us football more and made us better at the game.”

Other coaches in Region 5-3A have taken notice of Jones’ success. Southeast Lauderdale High School head coach Charles Black said he’s been impressed with the job Jones has done since taking over in 2013.

“They’re a really talented team, and he does a great job with those guys,” Black said. “It’s obvious they prepare well. He has a good rapport with his kids, and they respect him tremendously. That gives him an opportunity to do a really good job.”

Black also made note of Jones’ longevity, saying four years of good coaching has the Wildcats on the verge of capturing a state title.

“They’ve had a coach or two that went through shorts spurts where they were pretty good, but so much of it is he’s been there four years,” Jones said. “Plus, he’s a winner. From my understanding, everywhere he’s been, as an assistant or whatever, he’s won, so he expects it.”

To Jones, such words are the best kind of words a coach can hear from his peers.

“I want people to look at us and say, ‘That’s a good team, they’re well-coached,’” Jones said. “To me, that’s the best compliment you can give a coach, no matter how much talent is out there.”

Clayton called Jones a great coach and said the school owes him a great deal for the success he’s brought to the football program.

“He’s one of the best coaches to ever come through (here),” Jones said. “He went to the NFL, and he knew so much and brought it to Kemper and taught us.

PAVING THE WAY

A genuine love for the game he grew up playing is a big part of what drives Jones. Another big part is the feeling that, as a black head coach, he has to help pave the way for other black coaches who might want to lead a program themselves one day.

“It’s hard enough for us to get a job, so you want to put your best foot forward, because you don’t get many chances,” Jones said. 

While he takes his opportunity to coach seriously, Jones did say he doesn’t let the responsibility of being a coach who happens to be a minority overwhelm him.

“I don’t feel pressure, but I always think about it, because I know I’m in a position to help others,” Jones said. “I know some guys who wish they could be in my shoes, and I know some guys who are looking for opportunities to be a coach, so if I can help, I will.”

At the same time, Jones said he does want to win as much as possible in part because he feels the next up-and-coming black coach’s success might be dependent upon his success. That might be a lot for one person to take on, but Jones said his love for football makes it all enjoyable. 

“If I mess up, we’re less likely to get those opportunities,” Jones said. “It’s pressure for some, but that’s not pressure for me, because I enjoy what I do. I understand that I’m a young black coach and I don’t get some of the same opportunities, but that doesn’t mean you can’t be one of the best coaches just because you’re a minority or whatever the case may be. At the end of the day, it’s motivation, because I have to work twice as hard on the field and off the field, but I love it.”