Former Georgia player, Xavier assistant Jonas Hayes hired at Georgia State
Jonas Hayes is returning home to Atlanta. On Wednesday, former Georgia player and highly-touted Xavier assistant coach was announced as the new leader of the Georgia State Panthers.
The program couldn’t be more excited for Hayes, announcing the move on Twitter with a press release.
“Jonas Hayes, a rising star in the coaching ranks who led Xavier to the 2022 NIT Championship last week, has been named the 16th head men’s basketball coach in Georgia State history,” wrote the program. “Hayes will be introduced to the Panther Family in a news conference with Georgia State University President M. Brian Blake and Director of Athletics Charlie Cobb early next week.
“The Atlanta native takes over a Georgia State program that is coming off its fourth NCAA Tournament appearance in the last eight years and will begin play in the new 7,500-seat Georgia State University Convocation Center for the 2022-23 season.”
Moreover, Cobb couldn’t contain his excitement in having Hayes takeover the Panthers.
“I’m excited to announce Jonas Hayes as our new men’s basketball head coach,” Cobb said. “Over the past week, we interviewed multiple coaches excited about the opportunity to lead the Georgia State program.
“Jonas is an experienced leader who will build a staff that embraces our expectation of competitive success, develops men of character and engages our community positively and with energy.”
Over the last four seasons, Hayes has been apart of some great teams at Xavier. However, his biggest contribution to the program happened this season, when the former Georgia player took over the Musketeers as their interim coach for the NIT. That’s when Hayes led Xavier on a miraculous run, defeating Florida, Vanderbilt, St. Bonaventure and eventually Texas A&M to capture the NIT championship.
Now, Jones Hayes be looking to continue the success Georgia State have enjoyed recently.
More on Jonas Hayes, Georgia State Panthers
While Jonas Hayes was doing great things at Xavier, Georgia State had a tremendous season under coach Rob Lanier. The Panther captured the Sun Belt Conference title, and gave Gonzaga a scare in the NCAA Tournament. Afterwards, Lanier took the job at Southern Methodist University, but Hayes is a tremendous choice to replace him.
Continuing, Georgia State detailed Hayes’ ability as a player at Georgia in their release, as well.
“As a player, Hayes was a three-year letterwinner and started 41 of 88 games played for the Bulldogs from 2001-04, averaging 8.6 points and 4.9 rebounds for his career,” wrote the Panthers. “Hayes and his twin brother Jarvis played at Western Carolina as freshmen before transferring to Georgia in 2000. Jonas helped Georgia reach postseason competition twice, including the 2002 NCAA Tournament and 2004 NIT. He started 29 games as a senior and averaged 11.9 points and 5.3 rebounds.”
As you can see, Jonas Hayes knows what it takes to win in the State of Georgia. His reputation precedes him — good times are ahead for Georgia State with Hayes at the helm.