POPLARVILLE, Miss. — Emil Jones was one of the best two-sport athletes to ever step foot on Pearl River’s campus and now has earned his spot among the elite. An All-Conference and All-Region performer in football and men’s basketball, Jones will be enshrined in the Pearl River Community College Athletics Hall of Fame on July 26 at Hollywood Casino & Resort in Bay St. Louis.
“It caught me by total surprise,” Jones said of finding out he had been selected for the Hall of Fame. “I knew I had a good career at Pearl River, but I didn’t know it was this level. I didn’t know what to say at the time other than thank you.
“Pearl River has a great history, so for me to be in its Hall of Fame and be part of the history is unreal. I hold Pearl River so close to my heart. It meant a lot to me.”
Jones joins a 2024 Hall of Fame class that includes soccer’s Jack Byrd, baseball’s Nick Smith, tennis’ Pamela Munger and men’s soccer’s Walt Thomas. The Spirit of a Wildcat award recipients are Bobby and Marjory Thrash. Pearl River is also honoring the four men’s programs that made history during the 2003-04 school year by winning their respective MACCC Championships.
The deadline to secure tickets is July 11. Banquet tickets and golf teams can be purchased at PRCCAthletics.com/tickets.
ROLLING TO THE RIVER
It was safe to say that Jones had a very realistic chance at playing more than one sport at the collegiate level following a four-year high school career that saw him star in baseball, basketball and football for the North Forrest Eagles.
Jones’ play on the diamond, court and gridiron attracted many schools and while he had the attention and offers, his heart was always with The River.
“Pearl River was always home,” he said. “I had two older sisters who played basketball there. I always knew that in the back of my mind, it would be Pearl River when the time came.”
Although his first love was always basketball, legendary Pearl River coach Tim Hatten saw something in Jones and offered him an opportunity to become a quarterback for his pass-heavy, spread-style offense. He decided to take the football opportunity and headed to Poplarville for the 2008 school year.
It wasn’t long into his time on campus that then head men’s basketball coach Richard Mathis ran into Jones on campus and started to run the idea by him of featuring on the basketball court as well. Although he thought hard about the opportunity, Jones opted to stick to football for the 2008 season and not long after, he was named the starting quarterback for the 2008 season.
Jones did nothing but produce as a true freshman, completing 178 of 339 passing attempts for an incredible 2,501 yards and 18 scores. He also cashed in four rushing touchdowns. Jones’ efforts led the Wildcats all the way to an MACCC title game appearance and a final record of 8-3.
When the year was officially wrapped up, Mathis approached Jones again about playing basketball in the upcoming year. After thinking about it for a bit, Jones decided he’d taken on his sophomore football season and join the basketball program after it ended.
The 6-foot-3 quarterback started his sophomore season with a bang, racking up five touchdowns on the road against Holmes in the season opener. He went on to pass for 2,237 yards and 18 touchdowns while rushing for six scores and 209 yards, helping the Wildcats finish 6-3. Between both seasons, Jones accounted for 4,738 passing yards, 36 passing touchdowns and 10 rushing scores.
Jones talked about what it was like to play for Hatten and his offensive strategy.
“We definitely slung the ball around — there was a game where I had 50 passing attempts,” Jones said while laughing. “He was before his time with his passing game, and he had it down to a T. We could go down two scores and not be worried because we could score points in a hurry.”
When the season wrapped up, Jones headed back to the basketball court for the first time in over a year and immediately fell back in love with the game he’d grown up loving the most.
“Once I started playing again, it just relit the fire for the sport,” he said. “We were so close and did everything together.”
The closeness of the team displayed itself during the year. PRCC got off to a rough start to the 2009-10 campaign and was sitting at .500 a few games into the season. That’s when the team did the unthinkable, coming together to rattle off 20 consecutive victories capped off by winning the MACCC title. The Wildcats went on to finish the year with a 24-5 record. Jones averaged seven points and six rebounds in his first season on the court.
When his sophomore season officially ended, Jones had opportunities to head to the next level as Memphis and Grambling State were after his football abilities. With his love for basketball resurfacing, Jones decided to forgo his football offers and return to Pearl River for a second crack at basketball. For the first time in his life, he had a chance to focus solely on basketball and the move paid off quickly for the forward. Before the season even began, Troy had watched Jones practice and offered him a scholarship to play for the Trojans.
“(Long-time Troy assistant) David Felix came to PRCC before we started and watched us play pickup,” Jones said. “He offered me then. I went on my visit and met the head coach. I had never walked into a place that felt like home even when meeting strangers. I signed with them five games into the season.”
With a real basketball offseason behind him and his next-level plans already set, Jones went on to have one of the best statistical seasons in PRCC’s history. The 6-foot-3 forward averaged team highs in points and rebounds with 18.3 and 7.9, respectively. At the end of the campaign, he was named All-MACJC and All-Region 23. PRCC made it all the way back to the MACCC title game but fell just short.
“That third year was unreal,” Jones said. “Basketball was my love, so I was able to focus on basketball for the first time in my life. That was when I was playing my best basketball.”
Jones talked about what made him successful on the court.
“I could hit the occasional three, but my game was the midrange. I always had a knack for grabbing the rebounds,” Jones said. “I was able to read the ball off the rim pretty well. I was just trying to outwork everyone.”
AFTER THE RIVER
Jones headed off to Troy following his time as a Wildcat. In his first season as a Trojan, he averaged 9.6 points and 5.9 rebounds. The highlight of his Troy career took place in the first game of his senior season. Facing off against Mississippi State in the opening of the brand-new Trojan arena, Troy and the Bulldogs were locked in a 55-55 tie nearing the end of the contest. Then-head coach Don Maestri called a timeout to draw up a play. The original plan wasn’t for the ball to land in Jones’ hand.
“I guess coach Don saw in my face that I wasn’t pleased with the call,” Jones said. “He asked if I wanted the ball. He told the bench to scratch everything and to get it into my hands.”
The Trojans broke the huddle, headed back out the court and started play. A ball was dished inside to Jones. He caught the pass, pump-faked and drained a fade-away, mid-range jumper with 1.6 seconds remaining to propel the Trojans to a 56-53 victory over his home state Bulldogs. He averaged 11.4 points and 5.6 rebounds in his senior season.
Jones now resides in Hattiesburg. He is the head boys’ basketball coach and an assistant football coach at North Forrest.
His wife, Shy, is a former Pearl River women’s basketball player. The couple have three kids, A’Myah, Zoe and Emil III.
IN THE HALL
Jones joins both of his former head coaches in the Pearl River Athletics Hall of Fame. Mathis was inducted in 2012 and Hatten was enshrined in 2016.
“It’s a really cool thing to be able to say I am joining both of my head coaches,” Jones said. “I won a championship with coach Mathis, so we always have that moment. Now, coach Hatten and I have something in common that no one will ever take from us.”
SPONSORSHIP INFORMATION
Sponsorship packages are available for both the banquet and golf tournament.
To secure your sponsorship package or donate to the event, contact Mary Alice Chandler at mchandler@prcc.edu or 601-403-1193.
HOW TO NOMINATE
Know a former Wildcat who you believe should be considered in the future? Nominate by visiting https://prccathletics.com/hof/Hall_of_Fame_nomination_form or visiting PRCCAthletics.com/HOF and clicking the nomination form link at the top of the page.
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