Reports: Emmett Jones leaving KU football; Lance Leipold hiring Syracuse’s Terrence Samuel

By Benton Smith     Dec 6, 2021

Nick Krug
Kansas receivers coach Emmett Jones slaps hands with Steven Parker at the start of practice on Thursday, Aug. 8, 2019.

The interim head coach for Kansas football this past spring and the Jayhawks’ receivers coach each of the past three seasons, Emmett Jones reportedly is leaving the program to return to Texas Tech.

RedRaiderSports.com reported early Monday evening Tech and new head coach Joey McGuire are set to hire Jones as the Red Raiders’ next receivers coach. That news came shortly after another report, from Yahoo Sports’ Pete Thamel, that KU head coach Lance Leipold was hiring Syracuse receivers coach Terrence Samuel.

Jones, a Dallas native and key recruiter during his time at KU was hired by former coach Les Miles. Jones was a Texas Tech staff member from 2015-18.

Both Leipold and Samuel were assistants at Nebraska-Omaha during the 2004 and 2005 seasons. KU has not yet announced the hire, nor the departure of Jones.

Thamel labeled Samuel’s role at KU as an offensive staff position. With Jones reportedly leaving, Samuel would logically step in to replace him as receivers coach.

Prior to coaching Syracuse’s receivers this past season, Samuel was UNLV’s passing game coordinator and receivers coach in 2020, after spending 2011-19 at Michigan State, where he coached receivers the first eight years and defensive backs in 2019. Going further back, he coached running backs at Nebraska-Omaha in 2007, and defensive backs, outside linebackers and special teams between 2003 and 2005 at Nebraska-Omaha.

Jones was coming up on the end of the second and final guaranteed year on his contract with KU. Jones signed a restructured, six-year deal late in 2019. The final date of the second year is Feb. 28, 2022. KU Athletics holds options on additional years for the assistant.

Jones’ deal came with a hefty $600,000 buyout. Because his deal has not yet expired, Texas Tech would need to facilitate Jones’ buyout for that sum, barring some form of settlement between KU Athletics and the departing assistant.

This past offseason, KU Athletics and former offensive coordinator Brent Dearmon settled on a $100,000 buyout when Dearmon left for Middle Tennessee State. The figure was substantially less than the $500,000 buyout detailed in his contract.

Two days after the 2021 KU football season ended, Leipold announced other staffing changes, as the program moved on without defensive line coach Kwahn Drake and cornerbacks coach Chevis Jackson — both of whom were hired by former head coach Les Miles.

Leipold promoted senior analysts Taiwo Onatolu and Jordan Peterson to replace Drake and Jackson as full-time assistants.

The only other assistants currently with the program who were hired by Miles are running backs coach Jonathan Wallace, special teams coordinator Jake Schoonover and Peterson, whom Leipold just promoted to defensive backs coach.

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