Former Salem (W.Va.) University head coach Adam Williams begins his third season as an assistant men's basketball coach at Stetson. He was the first hire of new head coach Donnie Jones.
Jones and Williams are no strangers to each other as Williams has both played for, and coached under, Jones in the past. Williams, like Jones, is a West Virginia native.
“Adam is a great competitor as a player and a person,” Jones said. “He’s a classy, high-character individual that understands the game. He has a lot of experience on all levels of college basketball. Adam thinks like a head coach. He knows my system and my style of coaching. He’s played for me, he’s coached for me. Adam and I already have a relationship and a trust that’s been built through our shared experiences over the years.”
Williams is excited to not only land at Stetson but to have another opportunity to work alongside Jones.
“I really know Coach Jones and he really knows me,” Williams said. “And on top of that he’s just such a good person. And when you have an opportunity to work with somebody you know and respect, someone that you consider family, you can’t pass that up.
“As far as Stetson, it’s just beautiful. I think the fact that it’s a high academic school, the type of character and kids that will be attracted to come here will be fun to be around and coach every day. For me, it’s the total package.”
At Salem, Williams inherited a program which won just four games in the season prior to his arrival, and slowly built the Tigers into a winner. This past season Salem enjoyed its best yearn in over a decade, finishing 17-9 overall. The 17 wins were more than the previous four seasons combined.
For his coaching efforts, Williams was named ECAC Coach of the Year.
The relationship between Williams and Jones goes back several years. After beginning his playing career at Kentucky, Williams transferred to Marshall where he joined a program helmed by Jones.
Following his playing career, Williams joined the Marshall staff as a graduate assistant for the 2009-10 season. The Thundering Herd finished 24-10 that year and earned a bid to the CollegeInsider.com tournament.
Williams next spent two seasons as an assistant at West Virginia Tech (2010-12), helping lead the Golden Bears to a 21-8 finish during the 2011-12 season. Williams then joined Jones at UCF where he spent three seasons as Director of Operations (2012-15) for the Knights.
After his time in Orlando, Williams spent one season as an assistant coach at Longwood (2015-16) before landing at Salem.
The son of West Virginia coaching legend Tex Williams, the younger Williams was a decorated high school player, earning the Bill Evans Award in 2004 as the top prep player in the state.
Williams earned a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Marshall in 2009. He is married to the former Megan Wojcik, also a West Virginia native. The couple has two children: 3-year old son Nixon, and 1-year old daughter Georgina.
