Nicknamed "The Legend" by his players as a Centenary assistant coach, Willie Jackson left a lasting imprint with both Centenary and the ASUN Conference. Jackson dominated the hardwood in Shreveport, Louisiana, earning three-straight conference Player of the Year accolades and four First Team All-Conference selections. He remains the only league men's basketball player to accomplish both feats.
A native of the Webster Parish in Louisiana, Jackson attended Sibley High School and guided the team to 100-straight victories during his junior and senior seasons capped by a 58-0 record and state title in 1979-80. A self-described "regular old-country guy," Jackson decided to attend nearby Centenary College to remain close to his mother only two parishes away.
In a comfortable setting, Jackson wasted little time assimilating to the college game as he finished his freshman season averaging 17.6 PPG and 8.0 RPG to earn his first of four First Team All-Conference nods, as well as the TAAC Newcomer of the Year recognition. The Gents capped Jackson's first season with a 16-12 record and reached the semifinals of the conference championship. For the only time in his collegiate career, he missed out on the conference scoring title trailing Samford's Steve Barker by 0.3 PPG.
The 1981-82 season began Jackson's run of three-straight Player of the Year awards as he averaged 23.8 PPG, which ranked sixth in the nation. He shot 53.8 percent from the floor and added 9.7 rebounds per outing. Jackson showcased his skill set at the TAAC Championship in Louisiana Monroe's Ewing Coliseum, as he averaged 27.6 PPG & 8.6 RPG including a 34-point outburst in the semifinals which then tied the tournament record. His 83 points over the three games set the conference record for points in a three-game tournament, which still stands after 35 seasons.
Jackson continued his reign as the conference's top player over the next two seasons as he led the league in scoring and rebounding in 1982-83 with 24.0 PPG & 9.1 RPG, becoming one of two players to accomplish the feat in conference history.
As a senior, Jackson capped his career with his third Player of the Year honor by unanimous selection and finished the year averaging 23.7 points and grabbing 8.7 rebounds. In his final collegiate contest, he tallied 34 points and 12 rebounds in a double-overtime, one-point loss to Arkansas Little Rock in the TAAC Quarterfinals. He ended his career with 21 30-point games that included a career single-game high of 41. Jackson collected eight Player of the Week selections during his playing tenure.
Jackson became the 12th Centenary player selected in the National Basketball Association Draft in 1984 as the Houston Rockets picked him up with a fourth-round pick. However, a loaded frontcourt with Hakeem Olajuwon and Ralph Sampson prevented Jackson from earning a spot during training camp.
His plethora of basketball accomplishments both at Centenary and Sibley earned him inductions into the Louisiana Basketball Hall of Fame (1989) and the Centenary Athletics Hall of Fame (1996). He is joined in the Centenary Hall of Fame by his wife Zebber Satcher-Jackson, who starred for the Centenary squad from 1981-83.
With the conclusion of his playing days, Jackson turned his focus to coaching as he served as an assistant under his former coaches Tommy Canterbury and Tommy Vardeman. On Vardeman's staff for the 1989-90 season, Jackson helped the Gents to their only conference regular season title as Centenary finished with a 14-2 record in league play and 22-8 mark overall.
Jackson continued his coaching career at Louisiana high schools serving as the Head Coach for Loyola College Prep in Shreveport from 2005-12 collecting a program best 118 victories, which included three 20-win seasons, three playoff appearances and a school-record 27 wins in 2007-08. He continued to give back to the game with a stint at Central High School in Grand Cane, La., before moving to his current position as the boys and girls coach at St. Mark's Cathedral School in Shreveport.
The Legend of the Jackson name lived on at Centenary when his daughter Ashley decided to follow in her parents' footsteps after graduating from Loyola College Prep in 2007. She capped her collegiate career in 2011 as the program's second-highest career scorer and leader in free throws made and games played. Willie's youngest daughter, Alexis, recently graduated from Rhodes College in Memphis, Tenn.
Willie Jackson Career Accomplishments
- One of 23 players in NCAA history with 2,500 career points & 1,000 rebounds
- First player in ASUN history to win three Men's Basketball Player of the Year honors
- Four-Time First Team All-Conference selection
- Ranks second in ASUN history for career points
- Sits fifth in conference history for rebounds with 1,013; ranks 14th for steals & 35th in blocks
- One of two players to lead the league in scoring and rebounding in the same season
- Owns three of the top-six single-season scoring averages in conference history
- One of nine players to be named to at least three ASUN All-Tournament teams