Georgetown College Director of Athletics Brian Evans has announced the Tigers’ new head coach of the women’s basketball team. James Jackson, who has been serving as men’s basketball assistant for the past six seasons, is the program’s ninth coach.
“I was very pleased to see Coach Jackson apply for this position,” Evans said. “We had an overwhelming response of applicants and an elite quality of coaches in the final round. James stood out from the beginning and made it a very easy decision for myself and the committee.
“He has a proven track record of success in the conference, a vast knowledge of what our mission is here, an understanding of our program and the players, as well as a tremendous recruiting ability to Georgetown College over his six seasons. We are excited about what our future holds.”
During his tenure with the Tiger men, GC was 159-48 and 69-31 in Mid-South Conference play with six national tournament appearances with results of: one national title, two championship appearances, two quarterfinal finishes and one second round appearance.
“We are excited for Coach Jackson to be our next head coach,” said GC sophomore Shelby Beam. “We’ve all been around him at various times during our time here and know what a great coach he is. We know what he’s meant to our men’s program and so we know good things are in our future.”
Jackson is a 2007 political science major from Berea College, where he played soccer and helped student coach the basketball team. He then served as assistant at University of Louisville for coach Rick Pitino from 2007-09 (58-15 with deep runs in the NCAA tournament). In spring of 2009, Jackson went to another prominent Kentucky basketball program – Kentucky Wesleyan College. The Panthers were 48-15 with two appearances in the NCAA Division II national tournament during his two seasons.
“This is an exciting opportunity for myself and my family,” Jackson said. “I originally applied to be assistant coach for the women’s program when I was looking for my next step. It did not work out, but then the men’s head job came open and Coach (Chris) Briggs gave me a shot as his assistant. It has been the best six years. I met my wife here, and we now have a son. Georgetown is in my blood and to have the opportunity to be a head coach for a storied program is a blessing.
“I’ve learned a lot about coaching working beside Chris, including how to balance it all. He’s a great family man and instills that in all our players as well. I’ve enjoyed the interaction I’ve had with our women’s players over the years and watching them develop. I think together, we can do exciting things in the coming years.”
Georgetown returns 12 of the 13 member roster with just one senior, six juniors and five sophomores. The future looks very bright. The Tiger women have been in 14 national tournaments with the most recent coming in 2014. The best finish was a Fab Four appearance in the 2012 championship.
http://www.georgetowncollegeathletics.com/article/2854.php
Tagged with: Georgetown College James Jackson NAIA
