Former Oklahoma State head football coach Pat Jones, host of The Pat Jones Show on the Sports Animal  KYAL 97.1 FM, has been named the Oklahoma Sportscaster of the Year by the National Sports Media Association.

“We are very proud of what ‘Coach’ Jones has accomplished on The Sports Animal as he is the first radio only show-host in the awards 62-year history,” said Sports Animal/ESPN Tulsa program director Kevin Ward.

Jones has been co-hosting the 11 a.m.- 2 p.m. time slot for 16 years on KYAL 97.1 FM in Tulsa (and 10 a.m.-11 a.m. on WWLS in Oklahoma City) now named The Pat Jones Show. 

Jones was a coach at Oklahoma State for 16 years from 1984 to 1994.  He was head coach and before that he was an assistant. Jones was Big 8 Coach of the Year in 1984 and 1992. In a stretch from 1984 to 1988, OSU went 44-15 and had the school’s first three ten-win seasons with players like Sanders, Thomas, wide receiver Hart Lee Dykes and quarterback Mike Gundy (the current head coach at OSU).

Jones’ 62 wins were the most in OSU history until Gundy became head coach.

At OSU, he had an overall record of 62-60-3. In college, Jones was a linebacker and noseguard at Arkansas Tech before transferring to Arkansas.

Jones coached at Arkansas, SMU, Pittsburgh and OSU. At OSU, he coached Hall of Fame running back Thurman Thomas and 1988 Heisman Trophy winner Barry Sanders.

Jones spent 10 years as an NFL assistant with the Dolphins and Raiders after his college coaching career.

The Sports Animal Network consists of four radio stations; KYAL 97.1FM, KITO 96.1 FM, KEOJ 101.1FM and KGND AM 1470.  The Sports Animal Network can be heard in parts of Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, and Arkansas.

The Sports Animal network is owned by Stephens Media Group and affiliated with KXOJ 94.1 FM, KMYZ 104.5 FM, KTSO 100.9 FM, ESPN AM 1550/99.9 FM, KTSO-HD 94.5 FM and KCFO AM 970.