John Walter Jakus (born October 9, 1975)[2][1] is an American basketball coach who is the current head coach of the Florida Atlantic Owls men's basketball team.
 Jakus at Florida Atlantic in 2024 | |
| Current position | |
|---|---|
| Title | Head coach |
| Team | Florida Atlantic |
| Conference | The American |
| Record | 3–2 (.600) |
| Biographical details | |
| Born | October 9, 1975[1] |
| Alma mater | Trinity International University (1999) Baylor University (2014) |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 2004–2008 | Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy |
| 2005–2008 | Athletes in Action (VHC) |
| 2008–2014 | Athletes in Action |
| 2008–2009 | Agape Bulgaria |
| 2010–2011 | ABA Strumica |
| 2012–2014 | Baylor (GA) |
| 2017–2022 | Baylor (assistant) |
| 2022–2024 | Baylor (associate) |
| 2024–present | Florida Atlantic |
| Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
| 2008–2014 | Athletes in Action (director) |
| 2010–2011 | ABA Strumica (AGM) |
| 2014–2017 | Gonzaga (DBO) |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 3–2 (.600) |
Early life
editJakus grew up in Johnsburg, Illinois.[3] He attended Trinity International University in Deerfield, Illinois, where he received an undergraduate degree in religious studies in 1999, and later received a master's degree in sports management at Baylor University in 2014.[3][4]
Coaching career
editJakus coached at Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy from 2004 to 2008, having a winning percentage of .810 in four years as head coach.[3][4] He worked with the organization Athletes in Action (AIA) as a volunteer head coach for National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and professional trips from 2005 to 2008.[4] In 2008, he volunteered as a head coach for AIA in a trip to Bulgaria.[2]
Jakus became a full-time coach and director for AIA afterwards and also began coaching the team Agape Bulgaria.[2][4] He also served as team chaplain with Agape Bulgaria.[5] He served with the team through 2009, and in 2010 became the head coach and assistant general manager of ABA Strumica in Macedonia.[4] He served in the position until 2011 and helped the team earn a promotion to the top division.[4] He continued working with AIA through 2014.[4]
Jakus returned to the U.S. in 2012 to care for his son, who was diagnosed with autism.[2] He accepted a coaching position that year as graduate assistant for the Baylor Bears, remaining in the role for two seasons.[6] He left the team following the 2013–14 season and became the director of basketball operations for the Gonzaga Bulldogs.[2][7] Jakus served three seasons at Gonzaga and helped them reach the national championship in 2017.[8][9] He returned to Baylor after the season to become an assistant coach.[10] He was an assistant coach at Baylor for seven seasons, assisting as they won the national championship in 2021 and won Big 12 Conference titles in 2021 and 2022.[11] Jakus was promoted to associate head coach prior to the 2022-23 season.[12]
Jakus was named the head coach of the Florida Atlantic Owls on March 27, 2024.[13]
Head coaching record
edit| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florida Atlantic Owls (American Athletic) (2024–Present) | |||||||||
| 2024–25 | Florida Atlantic | 3–2 | 0–0 | ||||||
| Florida Atlantic: | 3–2 (.600) | 0–0 (–) | |||||||
| Total: | 3–2 (.600) | ||||||||
|
National champion
Postseason invitational champion
| |||||||||
Personal life
editJakus was born in Chicago, Illinois to John and Donna Jakus. He grew up in Johnsburg, Illinois and is the oldest of four children. John and his wife, Sara, have three children. John is a strong Christian, who started his basketball coaching career as a missionary.[4]
References
edit- ^ a b "John Jakus". coachesdatabase.com. Retrieved July 29, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e Moore, CJ (March 19, 2021). "The triumvirate: Assistants at Gonzaga, Baylor and Illinois all cut their teeth in Spokane". The Athletic.
- ^ a b c "John Jakus". Gonzaga Bulldogs.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "John Jakus". Baylor Bears.
- ^ Chaney, Luke (March 27, 2024). "Reports: FAU hiring John Jakus as next head basketball coach". 247Sports.
- ^ "John Jakus returns to BU hoops". Waco Tribune-Herald. May 20, 2017. p. 18 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Meehan, Jim (March 19, 2021). "Success Is No Coincidence". The Spokesman-Review. p. B1, B4 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Meehan, Jim (December 4, 2020). "Familiar Foes". The Spokesman-Review. p. B1, B4 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Meehan, Jim (May 20, 2017). "Jakus leaves GU's staff for assistant's position at Baylor". The Spokesman-Review. p. B1, B3 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Meehan, Jim (December 5, 2020). "Gonzaga ties strong on Baylor bench". Longview Daily News. p. B1, B2 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Borzello, Jeff (March 27, 2024). "Sources: Florida Atlantic hiring John Jakus as next head coach". ESPN.
- ^ "John Jakus Named Head Men's Basketball Coach". 27 March 2024.
- ^ Auerbach, Nicole; Andrejev, Alex (March 27, 2024). "FAU hiring Baylor assistant John Jakus as basketball coach: Source". The Athletic.
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