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Mississippi State’s Tony Hughes, the team’s assistant head coach who also served as the safeties coach and recruiting coordinator under Dan Mullen, has been hired as the head coach at Jackson State.
247Sports.com tabbed him as one of America’s top 10 recruiters in 2015 after Mississippi State hauled in one of the nation’s top 16 classes, according to several recruiting services, including ESPN’s rankings.
This was Hughes’ seventh season in Starkville, joining the program in 2009, the same season Mullen arrived. He was promoted to assistant head coach in 2013.
This is an official statement from Mullen on Hughes’ hiring as Jackson State’s coach:
“Tony is fulfilling a lifelong dream of becoming a head coach, and I am very proud of him. He has been a loyal assistant and a tireless recruiter. He’s done a tremendous job in helping elevate our program in our seven years here. Jackson State is not only getting an excellent head coach, but a great person and family man. We watched his son Jay come through our program, graduate and serve as a captain on our 2014 team that spent five weeks ranked No. 1. Tony’s values will continue to make him successful. I wish him and his family all the best.”
The Tigers have gone 8-15 over the past two seasons after firing Rick Comegy’s replacement, Harold Jackson, five games through the 2015 season. JSU assistant coach Derrick McCall took over for Jackson in an interim capacity.
Hughes, 56, is a Southern Miss alumnus and has spent a great deal of his coaching career in the state of Mississippi. He coached Southern Miss’ secondary in 2008 and was at Ole Miss from 2005 through 2007, coaching defensive backs and then tight ends.
Born and raised in Gainesville, Talal joined SDS in 2015 after spending 2 years in Bristol as an ESPN researcher. Previously, Talal worked at The Gainesville Sun.
