Jones returning to Tech; Patterson named head coach at ACU

Emmett Jones, who spent the past three seasons as an assistant coach at Kansas, will return to the Texas Tech football staff as passing-game coordinator and wide receivers coach, Tech announced Monday.

Jnes was on the Tech staff under Kliff Kingsbury from 2015-18, the first year as director of player development and the last three as outside receivers coach. When Kingsbury and his staff were dismissed after the 2018 season, Jones went to KU.

Jones played high-school football at Seagoville and began his college career as a walk-on quarterback with the Red Raiders under Spike Dykes. He later earned a degree from North Texas in 1999 and coached high-school football from 2000-14 at Seagoville, Dallas Lincoln, Dallas Skyline and Dallas South Oak Cliff.

Patterson named head coach at ACU

Texas Tech defensive coordinator Keith Patterson was named head coach on Monday at Abilene Christian University.

ACU dismissed Adam Dorrel on Nov. 21 after he went 19-32 in five seasons. The Wildcats were 5-6 this year, including 4-2 in the Western Athletic Conference.

"Keith Patterson has a proven track record at the Division I level of developing young men on and off the field," ACU vice president for athletics Zack Lassiter said in the announcement. "We have high aspirations for our football program to compete for WAC championships and qualify for the playoffs. Not only will Keith take our football program to the next level, he will be a great addition to the Abilene community."

ACU's announcement said Patterson will remain part of the Texas Tech staff for the Liberty Bowl. The Red Raiders face Mississippi State at 5:45 p.m. Dec. 28 in Memphis, Tennessee.

Tech is scheduled to open the 2024 and 2026 seasons with games in Lubbock against Abilene Christian.

The head-coaching job will be Patterson's first at the college level, though he was Pittsburgh's interim head coach for a bowl game at the end of the 2011 season and was Tech's acting head coach for the 2020 season finale when Matt Wells was out with COVID-19.

Patterson was a high-school head coach at Edmond (Okla.) Santa Fe in 1994 and at Ardmore (Okla.) from 1997-99. Since 2003, he's worked at Tulsa, Pitt, West Virginia, Arizona State, Utah State and Tech, serving as defensive coordinator or co-defensive coordinator at each of those stops.

Va Tech names Derek Jones

Virginia Tech announced Sunday that Derek Jones, an assistant coach the past two years on Matt Wells' staff, is joining the Hokies.

Virginia Tech's announcement listed Jones as an assistant coach with no more specific designation. Jones was associate head coach, co-defensive coordinator and secondary coach the past two years for the Red Raiders.

Joining the Virginia Tech staff puts Jones back in the Atlantic Coast Conference. He spent 12 seasons in the ACC as a Duke assistant from 2008-19.

This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Tech football: Emmett Jones returning to staff; Keith Patterson named coach at ACU