FAU, John Jakus adding former Baylor star Isaiah Austin to Owls' coaching staff

After Dusty May took his talents to the Michigan Wolverines, the Florida Atlantic Owls hired Baylor’s John Jakus as their next head coach.

Now, Jakus is rounding out his coaching staff. According to Jeff Goodman, it’ll include a former Bears star, as Isaiah Austin is joining the former Baylor assistant at Florida Atlantic, hired as part of the staff.

“New FAU coach John Jakus’ has hired the following to his staff, including Isaiah Austin, source told @thefieldof68. Todd Abernethy — retained. Jordan Fee — D-II coach of the year at Gannon; strong ties to South Fla as top assistant at Nova Southeastern for multiple years. Isaiah Austin — former Baylor player; working for NBA in the front office,” Goodman posted on X, formerly known as Twitter. “Demond Parker — Director of Player Development at Furman; was a GA at Baylor.”

Austin made a name for himself at Baylor, and then was set to take his talents to the NBA, before he was diagnosed with a mild form of Marfan syndrome. After the dream of playing professionally dissipated, Austin got into coaching, and has been working off the court in basketball.

Now, he’ll join Jakus with the Owls, where they’ll hope to continue May’s success at Florida Atlantic, after they’ve become one of the more exciting teams in the nation.

More on John Jakus, FAU Owls

Moreover, John Jakus is considered by many as one of the top assistant coaches in the country. He’ll get his chance to lead the FAU Owls into the new era, with life after Dusty May, the man that took them to their only Final Four in school history.

He originally joined the Baylor staff in May of 2017, after spending the previous three years with the Gonzaga Bulldogs as their director of operations. Before his stint with the Bulldogs, he also worked on the staff at Baylor as a graduate assistant during the 2012-2013 and 2013-2014 seasons.

During his time as a college basketball assistant coach, he’s guided his respective teams to five Sweet Sixteens, three Elite Eights, two Final Fours, and one national title. 

Jakus was a part of one of the best teams in Baylor basketball history, when they won their first national championship in 2020-2021. That team won the Big 12 title that year, too, finishing 28-2 overall and 14-1 in conference play. The Bears posted a program-record 11 wins against ranked opponents, including a perfect 7-0 mark against Top-10 teams.