Not only will 2024 be the introduction year of volleyball for Jones College, but it will also be the first year Mississippi community colleges are eligible to compete as a conference and be recognized nationally.
John Dussouy will bring volleyball to Jones College just in time to have the opportunity to be the Mississippi Association of Community Colleges Conference (MACCC) first winner.
Previously, Mississippi was home to four community college volleyball teams. With Jones College and Meridian Community College gaining volleyball programs, Mississippi can now have an official conference for volleyball.
The winner of MACCC will play the winner of the Alabama Community College Conference(ACCC) and go on to compete for a national tournament bid.
Dussouy became a part of the Jones family in April of 2023, after being contacted by Chris Robinson, the Jones College athletic director. He then fell in love with the campus and could not say no.
“When I first got onto campus and saw the size, the beauty of the campus, the facilities, the potential- it was almost like I was drawn to it to the point it was really, really hard to say no,” said Dussouy. “I have really enjoyed saying yes.”
After obtaining two bachelor’s degrees as well as his masters, the University of Southern Mississippi (Southern Miss) alumnus began his career as an athletic trainer at Coastal Alabama South. There the head coach recognized his skills and recruited him as an assistant coach.
While this will be Dussouy’s first year as a head coach, he brings much experience as he was assistant coach and head recruiter at Coastal Alabama South for 12 consecutive seasons. He is also on his ninth season coaching for the Eastern Shore Volleyball Club. He is also known for his sidecourt antics, getting so involved in the game that he has made cartwheels in response to wins.
Because Mississippi is nationally behind in the volleyball world, Dussouy hopes to have his team make connections with the younger generation in an effort to raise more interest. He keeps community service and academics a priority for him and his players.
“For me, it’s more than just the winning and the losing,” said Dussouy. “For me, it’s going to be the off-the-court stuff: having the best GPA amongst other sports on this campus, to be Academic All-Americans, to graduate, and if they’re not going to go play somewhere else, they’re going to get their degree from somewhere else. My goal is more academic than athletic, but in the end I still want to win.”
Dussouy’s assistant coaches consist of Chris Laird, former division one head coach, and Addie Ashton, former division one player from Southern Miss. Dussouy met Ashton through travel ball, while he and Laird go back 30 years, when they played volleyball together at Southern Miss.
Dussouy has currently signed 12 players to his roster as well as two managers from South Jones High School.
“This first year wasn’t just about getting really good volleyball players, but it was recruiting very good people. Every girl is extremely well educated, has great personalities, and will be good ambassadors of the school,” said Dussouy.
The Bobcats will be keeping themselves busy with 35 total games scheduled for their first season. Of those games, 10 of them are conference games.
The team is set to begin practice Aug. 5, 2024. Jones volleyball will have their first exhibition game on Aug. 20, 2024 against Millsaps College in Jackson. The Bobcats’ first home game will be Aug. 26, 2024 against Wallace State-Selma at 5 p.m. in the A.B. Howard Gymnasium.
“I know it will be hard to get the entire gym full, but my hope is that everytime someone comes, afterwards they say they will want to come back,” Dussouy said. “If that means I have to do five or six cartwheels, then so be it.”
by Sami Jordan
