LaFayette High School hires new head coach
BY DANIEL SCHMIDT
THE LAFAYETTE SUN
LAFAYETTE — For over a decade, Douglas Jones Jr. cut his teeth as a varsity position coach and junior high head football coach, gaining valuable experience as he waited for the right opportunity to take the next step.
It turns out it would be on familiar turf after Jones was named as the Bulldogs’ 34th head football coach on Jan. 28. He replaces Juan Williams, who parted ways with LHS on Dec. 30.
“I’m incredibly grateful for the opportunity,” Jones said. “This place is filled with pride and tradition, and we have a strong community, and I don’t take it lightly. I’m glad to be back, I’m glad to be a part of it. I’m going to just get my guys ready to produce and have a good product to show to our fans each and every Friday.”
Taking the job
It was an unexpected move for Jones, who graduated from LHS in 2008 after lettering in football for the Bulldogs as a receiver from 2004 until 2007. Before the job opened at the end of December, he was content to stay at Pike Road High School doubling as the varsity wide receiver coach and a head coach at Pike Road Junior High School.
Then, he got word that his alma mater needed someone to step in and lead the program. He decided to throw his hat into the ring, and the rest is now history.
“I saw an opportunity to build something special either down the road or even this upcoming year,” Jones said. “I know the potential is there, I know the kids are great and I know the community probably would love for me to come back. I’m grateful for that, but I just want to make a difference. And when I say make a difference, it’s not all about the wins and losses. I want to be able to help these guys become great young men, have character, be resilient and hold themselves to a higher standard.”
To this point, it’s the culmination of a career that has its roots in his days as a Bulldog playing on the same natural turf as his new players do.
As a young boy, his father, Douglas Sr., taught him to have integrity and grit, to do the little things right, even if nobody was looking at him.
Under Ike Grant, LHS’ winningest head coach, those same values were reinforced as Jones spent more time with him than his family at certain times of the year — such as spring training, summer conditioning and practices during the fall.
Alongside Granger Shook at PRHS, he learned the finer points of program management, how to ensure student-athletes excel in the classroom and how to push them to become better versions of themselves.
When looking back at his journey, Jones recognizes that each experience and relationship deeply influenced the coaching style he now brings to the Bulldogs.
It runs deeper than football, although the outcomes on Friday nights are also important. The main mark he hopes to leave is producing young men prepared to leave LHS’ walls and become productive fathers, husbands, fathers, sons, brothers and citizens.
Whether it’s weekly character education meetings, academic check-ins or senior exit plans, Jones already has a support system planned out before he ever steps foot in the weight room or onto the practice field.
“I’m trying to make sure that my seniors get ready to go,” Jones said. “It may be playing college football, it may be just being a college student, it may be learning a trade or moving to the workforce. But I want them to be ready for that next opportunity, so whatever I have to do, whether it’s [practicing] interviews, taking them myself to [visit] the college, it doesn’t matter to me. I just want the best for them.”
Experience
Jones received a bachelor’s in history from Jacksonville State University and a master’s in math, education and student affairs from the University of West Alabama while he returned to LHS to begin his coaching career in 2014.
There, he served as the varsity wide receiver coach and a junior varsity basketball coach until 2020. While he was on the Bulldogs’ staff, LHS compiled a 46-32 overall record, that includes the 2016 season, when the Bulldogs went 12-1 and won the 2A Region 5 title — the single-best season in program history.
In 2021, Jones left LHS to join the staff at PRHS, where the Patriots dominated both Class 5A and Class 6A. During his five years as the varsity wide receiver coach, PRHS went 52-15, won the 2021 5A state championship and claimed four region titles.
The Patriots also made appearances in the 6A semifinals in both 2024 and 2025 before falling to Saraland High School in those games.
According to unofficial statistics posted on MaxPreps, Jones’ players combined to catch 151 passes for 1,706 yards and 17 touchdowns per season on average while often playing in run-heavy offenses.
