Auburn, IN

Bill has given 38 years to coaching young men in the high school ranks. His teams’ success has been phenomenal. Beginning in 1960 at little Vaughnsville, a school of about 90 students near the Indiana –Ohio border where he did such a good job of coaching "they closed ;the school" as it was consolidated in 1962. For the next seven years Hicksville, another Ohio school, was the recipient of the Jones’ way of playing baseball. His legacy really begins in 1969 when he moved to DeKalb High School in Auburn, Indiana near Ft. Wayne. In 27 years at the Baron helm his squads won 612 games including 15 sectionals, three regional titles, two semi-state crowns and the 1980 State Championship. After retiring from DeKalb in 1996 little Ft. Wayne Canterbury, a private school of 220 student, talked him into coaching once again. After two years it was finally time to call it quits at the high school level. The summer of ’99 he returned to the diamond as manager of a 17-18 year old team in Auburn. Overall his teams have amassed a record of 751 – 345—1.

The recognition of his accomplishments have not gone unnoticed ;by various organizations. He has been honored as Coach of the Year by News-Sun many times, District 4 NHSACA, the IHSBCA, Northeast Hoosier Conference, Midland Conference, and in 1981 was selected the National Coach of the Year by the NHSACA.

As much as one would recognize the accomplishments as a coach a person in the IHSBCA would have to say that perhaps his contributions to the coaches association as just as outstanding. In 1971, along with Ken Schreiber and Jim Reinebold, they established the Indiana High School Baseball Coaches Association (the IHSBCA) and Bill has been the secretary-treasurer til 1996 at which time he was appointed Executive Director. His contributions to the association as endless but it is safe to say Bill is the backbone of the coaches association. Through his efforts, and down through the years others who have worked with him, the IHSBCA has become a leader in the high school ranks of the nation. Bill feels "that the video library, believed to be the only one of its kind in the nation" as one of the finer developments he pioneered.

Still not willing to get out of "the game" completely in ’98 he served as an associate scout for the San Diego Padres and in '‘9 is currently an associate scout for the Detroit Tigers. He and his wife of 38 years, Mildred, have a daughter and two sons and he still resides in Auburn.