the first time in program history, and the Trojans followed with another Sun Belt Tournament semifinal berth in 2021. Women’s indoor track & field posted its best-ever finishes in 2020 and 2021, while soccer took home a second-place finish in the Sun Belt in 2019.
In just two years as Troy’s Director of Athletics, Brent Jones has overseen a restructuring of the department’s external and internal teams that has led the department to set records in academics, licensing, attendance and season ticket sales. Jones leads the department under his W-4 mantra – Winning in the Classroom, Winning on the Field, Winning in the Community and Winning in the Stands. On the court, Troy posted one of its top Bubas Cup (Sun Belt All-Sports Trophy) finishes in recent years in 2020 despite many high-scoring spring sports not earning points due to the COVID-19 stoppage of play. Additionally, Jones guided the Troy Athletic Department through the most-unprecedented years in collegiate athletics due to COVID-19 with Troy operating a full capacity from a staff, student-athlete and sport participation standpoint, and Troy’s football team playing an 11-game schedule. On the court, the success of Troy’s teams has been plentiful. The Troy women’s basketball program won its third and fourth Sun Belt Conference titles in the last six seasons in 2020 and 2021. The volleyball program posted one of the best turnarounds in the nation in 2019 which saw it advance to postseason play for
This past season, the Troy softball program finished second in the Sun Belt Conference and earned an at-large selection; Troy’s first NCAA Tournament appearance in 25 years. Additionally, Troy baseball finished third in the Sun Belt, Gemma Finch advanced to the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championship in the 800m and men’s tennis entered the Sun Belt Tournament as the league’s No. 2 seed. The women’s cross country team turned in its best-ever finish at the Sun Belt Championship and the men’s basketball team won a game in the Sun Belt Tournament for the first time since 2018. Off the field of play, Jones has led Troy Athletics to extraordinary levels. Eleven of Troy’s 15 programs finished with grade point averages over 3.0 in the unprecedented 2019 spring semester while the collective student-athlete population posted a 3.11 GPA and eight total programs finished with a 3.5 GPA or higher. That success continued into the 2020-21 academic year, with 58 student-athletes receiving their degrees during the winter and spring commencement ceremonies. He currently serves as vice chair for the Sun Belt Conference Athletics Directors, the cochair of the Sun Belt Conference’s Marketing, Communications and Branding Committee, was appointed to the Sun Belt’s Name, Image and Likeness Committee and began a four-year term on the NCAA Committee on Sportsmanship and Ethical Conduct in the spring of 2021. He will assume the chair role of the Sun Belt Conference Athletics Directors for the 2023 season. Troy’s facilities have also been upgraded under Jones’ watch with new turf in The Vet, a new court design in Trojan Arena and a state-ofthe-art volleyball playing surface. Additionally, the volleyball and track & field offices in Trojan Arena have gone through a rebranding process. Troy’s tennis courts underwent a rebranding effort in the spring of 2021 in addition to the playing surfaces receiving upgrades, while the Troy Soccer Complex will have new turf in place for the 2021 season. Prior to the 2021 football season, Troy released a new premium seating area in the South End Zone of The Vet -- the Ultra Lounge -- which sold out a month prior to the season. Jones led a renegotiation on Troy’s multimedia rights deal with Playfly Sports, which has increased revenue for Troy Athletics for years to come. Additionally, Troy secured a new partnership with Affinity Licensing, which significantly
amplified Troy merchandise volume in the marketplace in addition to increasing revenue and better serving Troy’s fans and merchants. Thanks in part to a new partnership with IMG-L Ticket Solutions, the Trojans set numerous benchmarks during his four-plus years at Troy, including record-breaking attendance numbers for Troy football, men’s basketball, women’s basketball, volleyball, softball and baseball. Men’s basketball season ticket sales increased by 400 percent during his first season in the AD chair, while a record number of season tickets were sold for football, baseball and women’s basketball. Jones, who was introduced as Troy’s Director of Athletics on June 12, 2019, took over the role following a two-year stint as Troy’s Deputy Director of Athletics for External Operations. In his role as Deputy Director of Athletics, Jones had oversight of marketing, communications, advertising, ticket sales, Troy Sports Properties, broadcasting, promotions, fan engagement, fan experience, branding, licensing and trademarks. He served as the sport administrator for the baseball program and oversaw football scheduling. Jones spearheaded a partnership with Troy University’s Hospitality, Tourism and Sports Management program to offer a revenue generation class that assists in outbound sales efforts, ticket sales, marketing, hospitality, customer service and retention efforts. Also, several unique campaigns and events have been established including an online athletic merchandise store, the football Tailgate Terrace Concert Series, OneTROY Fridays, the Community Hero ticket plan, bowl socials around the state, a marketing, sales, and best practices partnership with the Montgomery Biscuits, performing a Trojan Takeover in New Orleans and Mobile during Troy’s two most recent bowl appearances and hosting a Troy University graduation in New Orleans for graduating football players, cheerleaders and band members during the R&L New Orleans Bowl. Jones is a 2013 graduate of the prestigious D1A Institute and a member of NACDA, ICLA, and NACMA. He is a frequent speaker and presenter for the CALS, NACAA and ICLA conventions as well as being an attendee for the inaugural Surefire Baseball Forum. Jones was a standout college baseball player at Oglethorpe University. He is married to the former Tracey Styers and they have two children, son Jaxson and daughter Payton Grace.
