Jason Hess

Jason was born and raised on a family dairy farm in Ashland, Ohio. He is the second of three boys born to Stephan and Katherine Hess. Jason’s parents demonstrated a strong work ethic and taught him Christian values and at an early age he began to enjoy farming as well as sports. In his early teen years his focus turned to basketball.
During his sophomore year at Ashland High School (AHS), Jason earned a starting spot on the varsity basketball team. He would finish his high school career with three varsity letters in basketball and graduate from AHS in 2000. During his playing days at AHS Jason was a first-team OHC selection three years as well as the team MVP for three seasons.

After high school, Jason went on to attend Malone University and continue his basketball career. Jason was a four-year letter winner for the Pioneers and a two-time All-AMC first-team selection as well as at two-time Academic All American. During his senior campaign Jason led the NAIA Division II in rebounds per game. He also earned a Third-team NAIA All-American honor. Jason became only the third Malone Pioneer to earn All-American status and the first to finish his career with over 1,500 points and over 1,000 rebounds. He finished his college career in 2004 with a double major in Business Administration and Accounting.

In 2005 Jason came back to AHS as the Junior Varsity Basketball coach. He served as the JV/Varsity Assistant Coach for 10 years until 2015 when he became head coach of the Arrows. Jason helps run the family farm with his dad in addition to coaching at AHS.

Nominated by Joe Burns