June Jones Resigns as SMU Head Coach: Latest Details, Comments and Reaction

Two games into the 2014 college football season, SMU head coach June Jones has resigned.   

Jones' agent, Leigh Steinberg, revealed that the veteran coach believed that the timing was right after he had helped return the Mustangs to respectability:

Defensive coordinator Tom Mason will serve as interim coach, per College Football Talk:

Some fans will almost certainly wonder why Jones chose to resign two games into the season if he felt that he had accomplished what he set out to do when he first took the job. He also agreed to a three-year extension with the school in December 2013.

SMU's awful start to 2014 may have played a role in Jones' decision. The Mustangs lost 45-0 to Baylor and then 43-6 to North Texas. As ESPN's Arash Markazi pointed out, things don't look to be getting better anytime soon:

USA Today's Dan Wolken listed the Mustangs as second in his weekly "Misery Index," presciently noting in retrospect that Jones may not have long left at SMU:

"

There is far too much back story here for the Misery Index to address all of it, but the simmering tension between Jones and SMU's fan base/administration has been front and center ever since it looked like he was headed Arizona State following the 2011 season, only to have that school decide at the 11th hour to hire Todd Graham instead.

"

Wolken mentioned that Jones' effort on the recruiting trail and the amount of time he spent at home in Hawaii were bones of contention. He also believed that the 61-year-old simply lost the fire he had previously shown at Hawaii:

With that said, Jones did very well at SMU when viewed through the spectrum of the school's recent history.

Before he arrived, the football program was still reeling from the death penalty handed down by the NCAA in 1987. The success of the "Pony Express" was only a distant memory until Jones led the team to four straight bowl games from 2009 to 2012.

Even those who feel disappointed and dissatisfied with Jones' time at SMU would likely agree that he laid the groundwork for the program going forward.

The Mustangs have a long way to go to become a national powerhouse once again, but that task has become slightly easier following Jones' tenure.

It's hard to tell where Jones will go from here. He's not so old that taking another job is out of the question, but given how burnt out he looked to be at SMU, you wouldn't be surprised to see him walk away from coaching altogether.