Curtis Jones Jr., one-time director of football operations for the University of Missouri under head coach Larry Smith, and older brother of former Tiger quarterback Corby Jones, died unexpectedly Wednesday morning. He was 40. Jones was beginning his second year as associate athletic director for academic support at West Virginia.
According to the WVU athletic website, Jones came to WVU from Texas, where he spent three years coordinating the Longhorns’ football academic support services program as the school’s assistant athletic director. Prior to that, he was the assistant athletic director for student development at USF for two years (2008-09), assistant director of athletic academic affairs at Oklahoma (2005-08), assistant athletic director for the Sooners’ compliance program (2003-05), and he also served as director of football operations for the University of Missouri for two years (1999-2000).
According to the Kansas City Star, Jones died of a heart related issue.
Curtis Jones Sr. was 55 when he died after suffering a heart attack in 1998, just before Corby’s senior year at Missouri, where Jones Sr. was an assistant coach.
