Will Jones finally got the call.
The interim head basketball coach at N.C. A&T since December, Jones was at home when the phone rang and the interim tag disappeared.
“It’s been a long process, but it was well worth it,” Jones said. “I knew that if I was just patient, good things would happen.”
Jones took over the Aggies basketball program around Christmas when former head coach Jay Joyner was suspended. The reason for the suspension has never been disclosed.
Jones took over in the days preceding a trip to play Illinois, a trip that ended up being the beginning of a wild ride for the coach and his players. A&T would go 14-5 under Jones, winning 12 of 16 MEAC games in the process. He would be named conference coach of the year.
It seemed a foregone conclusion that he would formally be named head coach, but the process took a while longer than anyone thought.