Charles “Yogi” Jones is entering into his ninth season at Bethune-Cookman University. Considered by many as one of the nation’s best defensive minds in the game of football, Jones has helped mold the BCU defense into one of the best in the FCS (Football Championship Subdivision) for years.
During the 2017 season, Jones served as the Assistant Head Coach, as well as his day-to-day duties in the role of Defensive Coordinator and Pro Liaison. The Wildcat defense concluded the season by leading the MEAC in passing yards allowed (161.5) and finished 11th in the FCS. BCU was third in the conference and 12th nationally with a 106.71 defense passing efficiency.
BCU placed two starters on the postseason All-Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference teams with safety Diquan Richardson earning First Team honors and defensive end Todney Evans named to the Second Team.
Following the 2016 campaign, Richardson would be named to the All-MEAC First Team on the defensive side of the ball under the guise of Jones, while Kevin Thompson would be selected to the third team on defense.
During the 2015 season, under then first-year head coach Terry Sims, Jones moved from his former duties as linebackers coach to strictly overseeing the defensive exploits of the Wildcats as defensive coordinator and pro liaison, in addition to being the associate head coach. Prior to the 2015 campaign, Jones worked for five years as the linebackers coach and defensive coordinator for the Maroon and Gold.
Overall, this will be Jones’ 33rd year as a coach on either the collegiate or professional level.
Affectionately known as “Yogi” throughout the football coaching community, Charles Jones has kept the BCU defense ranked amongst the best nationally since his arrival in Daytona Beach. Under his tutelage, Wildcats teams have ranked in the Top 25 of NCAA FCS football in numerous categories each year.
In what will be eight years as the defensive coordinator for the Maroon and Gold, Bethune-Cookman has lowered the amount of yards per game against opponents in all but one season (2016). It started with an average of 322.0 yards per game allowed in 2010, culminating with an average of 237.8 allowed in 2015. In scoring, teams are being limited to 19.24 points per game over the span of six of the last seven season overall. On the ground, Bethune-Cookman has just surrendered an average of 129.7 yards per game over the course of six of the last seven seasons
Despite working with a relatively “new” defense in 2015, Jones may-well have orchestrated his finest coaching duties in continuing to keep the BCU defense in the upper-half of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) in total defense, as well as many other categories. In total defense, the Cats finished fifth in the league, while allowing 165.4 yards per contest on the ground – finishing fifth-best in the league. The scoring defense was fifth-best in the league, and the passing defense allowed just 183.1 yards per game through the air. BCU also finished fifth in the MEAC for pass defense efficiency (110.7).
Redshirt freshman linebacker Trenton Bridges finished in the top-half of the league and second overall on the Wildcats squad with 64 total tackles, including three tackles for loss. In all, the Cats racked up 18 quarterback sacks, adding 10 interceptions and nine recovered fumbles. In all, the defense forced 12 fumbles to claim 19 takeaways on the campaign. Once again, that number allowed the Wildcats to finish in the upper-half of the conference for total takeaways.
Jones and the BCU defense were considered by many to be the nation’s best entering the 2014 campaign. At the end of the year, it was clear those publications were correct. Bethune-Cookman finished the year ranked top the FCS statistical categories in total defense (237.8 yards/game) – almost 25 yards ahead of second-place finisher and fellow MEAC member Norfolk State (251.3). The Wildcats would go on to rank atop the nation in rush defense as well, allowing a school-low 80.17 yards per game on the campaign. In addition, opponents only touched the end zone nine times on the ground all year.
For six consecutive games, opponents were held under 100 yards rushing, as well as seven of the final eight games of the year. Only one (1) FCS school was able to top the 100-yard rushing category all year against the Cats, that being Hampton (173) in an ESPNU Thursday night broadcast in Virginia. Other categories in BCU led or finished near the top of the national charts were as follows: third down conversion defense (.250) – first; first downs defense (160) – second; passing yards allowed (157.58) – seventh; tackles for loss (8.6) – ninth; team pass efficiency defense (107.36) – 12th.
For BCU Ralph Williams, Jr. and Tavarus Dantzler ended the year with more than 785 tackles each, led by Williams’ 101-tackle performance. Dantzler led the team with three fumble recoveries, while LeBranden Richardson and Erik Williams led the Cats with 15 tackles for loss apiece. Richardson also led BCU with eight quarterback sacks on the campaign. For their talents, Richardson and Ralph Williams, Jr. both landed on the All-MEAC First Team. Dantzler grabbed second team accolades, alongside Erik Williams and Rony Barrow.
During the 2013 campaign, Jones’ defensive unit was once again one of the most vaunted in all of FCS. The Wildcats finished third in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference in scoring defense (sixth nationally), allowing just 17.8 points per game. The Cats picked off 19 passes on the season, placing the team in a tie for fifth nationally in that category, while also sitting atop the league. They would go on to finish second nationally in total defense (255.5 yards/game), eighth nationally in rush defense (106.3 yards/game) and 12th nationally in turnovers gained (28).
Against Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) opponent FIU, the Wildcats limited the Panthers to just 73 yards rushing (their second-lowest of the season), and just 229 yards of total offense. All the while, earning the school’s first-ever win over an FBS opponent. Weeks later, BCU limited Delaware State to a season-low 10 yards rushing – the second-lowest output of the season surrendered by the Wildcats defense. Just under a month later, the Wildcats stymied the North Carolina Central rushing offense to negative-1 yards in a nationally-televised game on ESPNU. In fact, BCU held five consecutive opponents under the century mark in rushing from Oct. 5 (Delaware State) through Nov. 2 (N.C. Central).
In all, the Cats surrendered just 10 rushing touchdowns on the year, with four of those coming against eventual BCS national champion Florida State in Tallahassee.
The defensive unit garnered several individual end-of-year accolades with Jarkevis Fields and Nick Addison being named to the All-MEAC First Team, while Dyron Dye and LeBranden Richardson were voted to the second team. Addison and Fields were later selected to the BoxToRow All-America Team, as well as the Beyond Sports Network All-America squad. Solely, Fields earned The Sports Network Third Team All-America honors to cap off his stellar BCU career, finishing second all-time in school history in tackles. Addison garnered Associated Press FCS Second Team All-America honors as he led the Cats with a season-high five interceptions from his defensive back position.
In 2012, the Wildcats stood as the third-best team in the nation for passes intercepted, bringing down 20 on the campaign. They also improved a spot from 12th in passing defense in 2011, up to 11th in 2012. The Cats’ 20 interceptions also ranked as the most for any team sitting in the top 25 for passing defense overall. In passing efficiency defense, the Wildcats were second in the nation, sitting just .37 behind frontrunner North Carolina A&T. For scoring defense, Bethune-Cookman not only finished second in the MEAC, but also 10th in the nation.
In capturing their second MEAC crown in three years, the Wildcats defense helped limit the opposition all season long in 2012. As a unit, the Cats finished second in scoring defense in the league, in addition to third in total defense. Since his arrival, the BCU defense has finished no lower than fourth in the league in those categories.
In takeaways, the BCU defense sat atop the league with +18 in turnover margin. That comes on the heels of the team finishing atop the league in red zone defense. That was up a space from 2011 where they finished the season second in the conference.
In 2011, the Wildcats ranked 14th in the FCS in pass defense (174.5 YPG), 15th in total defense (307.1 YPG), and 23rd in scoring defense (20.2 PPG), while ranking seventh in tackles for loss, garnering 8.18 per game. Coach Jones’ schemes and coaching paved the way for defensive end Ryan Davis to earn Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Defensive Player of the Year after ranking seventh nationally in tackles for loss and 10th in sacks, later leading him to an NFL free agent contract with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
In his first season with the Wildcats (2010), Jones directed a defense that ranked fourth nationally in pass efficiency defense (93.97), 15th in scoring defense (19.0 PPG), 25th in pass defense (174.9 YPG) and aided the team in ranking first overall in turnover margin (+2.25) from week one forward. Jones’ stingy defense proved key in BCU’s 10-1 regular season record, leading the Wildcats to a share of the MEAC crown and first NCAA FCS Playoff appearance since 2003.
Jones returned to the NCAA coaching ranks after spending 10 years coaching in NFL Europe, in addition to Semi-Pro football in France with the Paris Flash, who were 2009 French National Champions and Euro Bowl finalists.
Jones coached on Tonal Europe, World Bowl Championship teams (Frankfurt in '99 and Hamburg in '07). During his time in Frankfort as defensive line coach, he worked with former BCU Football Head Coach Brian Jenkins, who was Special Teams Coordinator in 2001. Jones worked with NFL players Paul Spicer (Jacksonville Jaguars), Willie Whitehead (New Orleans Saints), and Gary Stills (Kansas City Chiefs) during his European tenure. He also served as linebackers coach in Scotland and was the defensive coordinator in Berlin.
Jones interned with the NFL Fellowship Program with the Miami Dolphins (2000), the Cleveland Browns (2001), and the Carolina Panthers (2005 and 2006). In 2002 and 2003, Jones was hired by the Cleveland Browns as a Player Personnel Assistant working in both the Pro Personnel and the College Scouting Departments.
Jones has trained international linebackers for the NFL's International Practice Squad Program that placed 16 international players on NFL practice squads. Coach Jones was a linebacker training consultant for Athletes Performance at their Gulf Breeze practice facility and coached linebackers in the Offense-Defense All- American Bowl Game.
Yogi also coached for 12 years at the Division 1-A (now known as FBS) and 1-AA (now known as FCS) collegiate levels, entering the coaching ranks as a graduate assistant coach at the University of Pittsburgh in 1984. He went on to coach the defensive line and linebackers at James Madison University (1985-88) leading the team into the NCAA playoffs for the first time in school history. Jones also coached at Rutgers University (1989) and Tulane University (1992-94), and he coached tight ends and offensive tackles at Pittsburgh (1990-91).
A native of Donora, Pennsylvania, Jones graduated from Ringgold High School, the same school that NFL Hall of Famer Joe Montana attended and was recruited from to Notre Dame to star for the Fighting Irish.
Jones earned his Bachelor's Degree in Economics and did Master's Degree work in Public Administration from the University of Pittsburgh. He played linebacker and defensive line at Pitt (1978-82) and was a Panthers teammate of NFL Hall of Fame member Dan Marino. Jones played one season of NFL football signing as a free agent linebacker with the Dallas Cowboys in 1983.
Married for more than 25 years to his wife Jane, the couple has two children: Morgan Mallory.
