Jones entering officials’ Hall
- Updated: May 5, 2020
AHSAA director of officials, a 30-year veteran, joins mentor, 10 others in officials’ second induction class
From AHSAA News
Mark Jones, the Alabama High School Athletics Association Director of Officials, is one of 12 state contest officials who will be inducted into the Alabama Sports Officials Foundation Hall of Fame in the Class of 2020.
The induction ceremony is expected to be held in August.
Jones will be joined in the ASOA’s second induction class by his mentor Glenn Hawkins, Patsy Burke, Owen Butts, Reggie Copeland, Kevin Fehr, Bill Gaulden, Paul Greene, Jeff Hilyer, Dana Wallace, James Wilson and Houston Young.
The Class of 2020 include individuals who have varied officiating backgrounds – from high school to college and professional sports. They have played important roles in training and developing contest officials in Alabama as well as mentoring and raising the level of consistency and professionalism in the state. The selections were made by a special ASOF Hall of Fame Committee from nominations submitted.
“I have always enjoyed officiating,” Jones said. “I am extremely honored to be inducted into the ASOF Hall of Fame. It is only possible because I had the opportunity to work with such great people throughout my officiating career. It is a special honor to be inducted with Glenn Hawkins. As the administrator of the East Alabama Officials Association, Glenn got me started in football officiating.
“He taught me a great deal about life and officiating. I contribute my success in life to my officiating experiences. Officiating might be one of the best things you can do to be a better person as you go through life.”
Jones, who joined the AHSAA in his current role in 2016, served as a contest official for more than 30 years. He has officiated high school basketball, football and baseball during his career, spending eight years officiating NCAA women’s basketball as well.
He worked in various roles at Jacksonville State from 1984 to 2016, and also served as a Jacksonville City Councilman from 2008 to 2016. In his role at the AHSAA, in addition to his duties managing and training the more than 7,000 contest officials, Jones has spearheaded the AHSAA’s football Instant Replay program, which is beginning its third year next fall.
In his role overseeing AHSAA officiating, he has helped bring officiating stipends in line with other state associations and has also utilized the latest technology to streamline the assigning and payment process. He currently serves on the NFHS National Football Rules Committee.
While at JSU, he taught sports officiating classes for 28 years for multiple sports including football, basketball, volleyball, soccer, softball and baseball.
Hawkins, a 1944 graduate of Alexandria High School and 1952 grad of Jacksonville State, began his journey in officiating immediately out of high school. Sixty years later, he was still officiating football and basketball at the high school level – encouraging and mentoring young officials to get in the game.
The Anniston native, an inaugural inductee of the Calhoun County Sports Hall of Fame, was a founding member of the East Alabama Officials Association for football, basketball, baseball and volleyball. He continued to keep the clock in football and basketball even when his health in his later years prevented him from officiating on the field.
He was a proud World War II Navy veteran and also a staunch conservationist who volunteered for over 40 years to aid in the effort to improve, protect, and preserve our state’s natural resources. He passed away at age 82 in 2009.
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