The first coaching vacancy of the 2014 season came on Monday when SMU head coach June Jones resigned from his position, effectively immediately.
"It was a very difficult decision for me to make, as you can imagine. I have devoted my life for the last 50 years to playing and coaching this game and it has been a great journey," Jones said in a statement released by the school. "This job has a lot of demands, as you know, and along with that journey comes a price that is paid. I have some personal issues I have been dealing with and I need to take a step away so I can address them at this time."
SMU's defensive coordinator, Tom Mason, will take over the head coaching duties for the rest of the season.
Jones went 36-43 during his time with the Mustangs. He took the team from 1-11 in 2008 to 8-5 in 2009. The team went to the 2009 Hawaii Bowl, which was SMU's first bowl appearance since 1984 and first bowl game since their 1989 "Death Penalty" handed down by the NCAA due to rules violations. SMU beat Nevada 45-10.
Jones led SMU to a bowl game each year between 2009 and 2012. He went 3-1 in those four games, with the only loss being the 2010 Armed Forces Bowl to Army. SMU also made an appearance in the 2010 Conference USA Championship Game against Central Florida. SMU lost 17-7.
Prior to his time at SMU, Jones was the head coach at the University of Hawaii from 1999 through 2007. In the 9 years at Hawaii, Jones' teams had a winning record 7 times and he finished his time at Hawaii with a record of 76-41. The highlight of his time at Hawaii was the 2007 season. Hawaii went 12-0 in the regular season and were invited to the 2008 Sugar Bowl to face the Georgia Bulldogs. However, Hawaii was decimated in that game, 41-10.
SMU (0-2) has started the 2014 season very poorly. They have been outscored 88-6 in their two games. SMU has a bye this week and will face Texas A&M on Saturday, September 20.