Chris Jones, who played at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, has been named the Canadian Football League's coach of the year.
Jones, a native of South Pittsburg, was chosen for the Annis Stukus Trophy after guiding the Saskatchewan Roughriders to a 12-6 regular-season record, the second-best mark in the league this season and the most wins for the franchise in 10 years. Saskatchewan finished second in the West Division and lost in the first round of the playoffs this month.
It was the third time in his five seasons as a head coach that Jones, who also serves as the team's general manager and vice president of football operations, had been nominated for the award. He also was nominated in 2014 and 2015 after each of his seasons with the Edmonton Eskimos.
In 16 seasons of coaching in the CFL, Jones has helped teams reach seven Grey Cup championship games, winning it four times. With the 51-year old Jones overseeing the defense, the Roughriders also set a CFL record with 11 defensive touchdowns this season.
"This is a big honor," Jones said during his acceptance speech. "I accept this award, but it isn't about me, I can assure you. We've just got a really, really good group that's dedicated to each other."
Contact Stephen Hargis at shargis@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6293. Follow him on Twitter @StephenHargis.