Ben Jobe
Encyclopedia
Ben Jobe is a former American
men's basketball coach. He is best known as the head coach of the Southern University Jaguars - a position he held for 12 years. He has also been head coach of the men's college basketball teams at Tuskegee University
, Talladega College
, Alabama State University
, South Carolina State University
, University of Denver
and Alabama A&M University. Jobe has also served as assistant coach at the University of South Carolina
, Georgia Tech, and briefly served as an assistant with the NBA
's Denver Nuggets
.
. He attended Pearl High School
in Nashville where he was a successful basketball player. In 1950, Jobe earned all-district and all-state honors and was then named to the 1951 all-national high school team.
Jobe then enrolled at Fisk University
, earning All-Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
honors during his junior and senior seasons. He earned a bachelor's degree from Fisk in 1956 and later went on to earn a master's degree from Tennessee State University
. In 1958, Jobe began his coaching career at Cameron High School in Nashville, Tennessee. His first (and only) Cameron team won 24 games, a school record. After the season was over, Jobe decided to move to Sierra Leone
, West Africa
to coach a junior college
basketball team. Jobe's coaching had a quick effect: his teams posted back-to-back undefeated seasons.
Jobe returned to the United States and began coaching at Talladega College
in Alabama
, a position which he held for three years.
four times, went to the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) once, won five Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
Championships, won 11 Southwestern Athletic Conference
Championships, and won two NAIA
Tournament Championships.
Perhaps his most memorable moment as a college basketball coach was the Jaguars' 93-78 win over the then ACC
Champions, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
, during the first round of the 1993 NCAA Tournament
in Tucson, Arizona
.
Jobe coached former San Antonio Spurs
star guard (now coach of the Dallas Mavericks
) Avery Johnson
and late Charlotte Hornets player Bobby Phills
.
Upon his retirement from Southern in 2003, Jobe had accumulated 524 wins as a head coach in college basketball spread among 8 teams over 31 seasons (a 0.611 win percentage).
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
men's basketball coach. He is best known as the head coach of the Southern University Jaguars - a position he held for 12 years. He has also been head coach of the men's college basketball teams at Tuskegee University
Tuskegee University
Tuskegee University is a private, historically black university located in Tuskegee, Alabama, United States. It is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund...
, Talladega College
Talladega College
- External Links :* -- Official web site*...
, Alabama State University
Alabama State University
Alabama State University, founded 1867, is a historically black university located in Montgomery, Alabama. ASU is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund.- History :...
, South Carolina State University
South Carolina State University
South Carolina State University is a historically black university located in Orangeburg, South Carolina, United States. It is the only state funded, historically black land-grant institution in South Carolina and is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund.- Colleges, departments,...
, University of Denver
University of Denver
The University of Denver is currently ranked 82nd among all public and private "National Universities" by U.S. News & World Report in the 2012 rankings....
and Alabama A&M University. Jobe has also served as assistant coach at the University of South Carolina
University of South Carolina
The University of South Carolina is a public, co-educational research university located in Columbia, South Carolina, United States, with 7 surrounding satellite campuses. Its historic campus covers over in downtown Columbia not far from the South Carolina State House...
, Georgia Tech, and briefly served as an assistant with the NBA
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
's Denver Nuggets
Denver Nuggets
The Denver Nuggets are a professional basketball team based in Denver, Colorado. They play in the National Basketball Association . They were founded as the Denver Rockets in 1967 as a charter franchise of the American Basketball Association, and became one of that league's more successful teams...
.
Early career
Ben Jobe was raised in Nashville, TennesseeNashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
. He attended Pearl High School
Martin Luther King Magnet at Pearl High School
Martin Luther King Jr. Academic Magnet for Health Sciences and Engineering at Pearl High School is a public high school located in Nashville, Tennessee....
in Nashville where he was a successful basketball player. In 1950, Jobe earned all-district and all-state honors and was then named to the 1951 all-national high school team.
Jobe then enrolled at Fisk University
Fisk University
Fisk University is an historically black university founded in 1866 in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. The world-famous Fisk Jubilee Singers started as a group of students who performed to earn enough money to save the school at a critical time of financial shortages. They toured to raise funds to...
, earning All-Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
The Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference is a College athletic conference consisting of historically black colleges and universities located in the southern United States. Formed in 1913, the SIAC is a member of the NCAA and participates in Division II athletics...
honors during his junior and senior seasons. He earned a bachelor's degree from Fisk in 1956 and later went on to earn a master's degree from Tennessee State University
Tennessee State University
Tennessee State University is a land-grant university located in Nashville, Tennessee. TSU is the only state-funded historically black university in Tennessee.-History:...
. In 1958, Jobe began his coaching career at Cameron High School in Nashville, Tennessee. His first (and only) Cameron team won 24 games, a school record. After the season was over, Jobe decided to move to Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
, West Africa
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries and an area of approximately 5 million square km:-Flags of West Africa:...
to coach a junior college
Junior college
The term junior college refers to different educational institutions in different countries.-India:In India, most states provide schooling through 12th grade...
basketball team. Jobe's coaching had a quick effect: his teams posted back-to-back undefeated seasons.
Jobe returned to the United States and began coaching at Talladega College
Talladega College
- External Links :* -- Official web site*...
in Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, a position which he held for three years.
Coach of Southern University Jaguars
Ben Jobe took the helm of the Southern University Jaguars in 1986. He stayed on until 1996. He returned again to Southern in 2001 for two more seasons, retiring completely from college basketball in 2003. In 12 years at Southern, Jobe compiled a 209-141 record, led the Jaguars to the NCAA tournamentNCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship
The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship is a single-elimination tournament held each spring in the United States, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship in the top tier of college basketball...
four times, went to the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) once, won five Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
The Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference is a College athletic conference consisting of historically black colleges and universities located in the southern United States. Formed in 1913, the SIAC is a member of the NCAA and participates in Division II athletics...
Championships, won 11 Southwestern Athletic Conference
Southwestern Athletic Conference
The Southwestern Athletic Conference is a college athletic conference headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, which is made up of historically black universities in the Southern United States...
Championships, and won two NAIA
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics is an athletic association that organizes college and university-level athletic programs. Membership in the NAIA consists of smaller colleges and universities across the United States. The NAIA allows colleges and universities outside the USA...
Tournament Championships.
Perhaps his most memorable moment as a college basketball coach was the Jaguars' 93-78 win over the then ACC
Atlantic Coast Conference
The Atlantic Coast Conference is a collegiate athletic league in the United States. Founded in 1953 in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC sanctions competition in twenty-five sports in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association for its twelve member universities...
Champions, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
The Yellow Jackets is the name used for all of the intercollegiate athletic teams that play for the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, Georgia. The teams have also been nicknamed the Ramblin' Wreck, Engineers, Blacksmiths, and Golden Tornado. There are 8 men's and 7 women's teams that...
, during the first round of the 1993 NCAA Tournament
1993 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
The 1993 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 64 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 18, 1993, and ended with the championship game on April 5 in New Orleans, Louisiana...
in Tucson, Arizona
Tucson, Arizona
Tucson is a city in and the county seat of Pima County, Arizona, United States. The city is located 118 miles southeast of Phoenix and 60 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border. The 2010 United States Census puts the city's population at 520,116 with a metropolitan area population at 1,020,200...
.
Jobe coached former San Antonio Spurs
San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio, Texas. They are part of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association ....
star guard (now coach of the Dallas Mavericks
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
) Avery Johnson
Avery Johnson
Avery Johnson is a former American professional basketball player and current head coach of the National Basketball Association team New Jersey Nets. He has also coached the Dallas Mavericks, leading them to their first NBA Finals appearance and four consecutive 50+ win seasons...
and late Charlotte Hornets player Bobby Phills
Bobby Phills
Bobby Ray Phills II was an American professional basketball player for the National Basketball Association's Cleveland Cavaliers and Charlotte Hornets....
.
Upon his retirement from Southern in 2003, Jobe had accumulated 524 wins as a head coach in college basketball spread among 8 teams over 31 seasons (a 0.611 win percentage).