Thursday, November 13, 2008
As college basketball season revs up and eyes begin to turn north to Lexington and Louisville, former Hopkins County Central player Albert Jackson has been garnering the attention of his coach and teammates at the University of Georgia.
On Monday, Jackson’s teammates and coach Dennis Felton tabbed the Earlington native as one of the Bulldogs’ three captains for the 2008-09 season for his leadership and continued hard work through the offseason.
The team also selected seniors Corey Butler and Terrance Woodbury as captains, but Jackson, better known as A.J. to his teammates, earned the lone junior nomination.
“It feels pretty good, just being here three years and I kind of looked up to Dave Bliss, the captain from last year, he was a post player,” Jackson said. “I always tried to learn from him. It feels good for coach to recognize that I’m really working hard to be a leader and my teammates to recognize the same thing and for them to vote me in as captain is a big honor.”
Felton expressed great confidence in Jackson and his fellow captains when he told georgiadogs.com of the team’s decision.
“I speak for all of their teammates when I say that the leadership of our team is in good hands,” Felton said. “’Wood,’ Corey, and A.J. all understand what an honor it is to be a Bulldog and they have done an excellent job of conveying that message to their teammates.”
Sophomore guard Zac Swansey spoke to the Web site on behalf of the players.
“As leaders on and off the court, Albert, Wood, and Corey have all the tools,” he said. “They lead by example all the time and are always there for their teammates.”
At 6-11, Jackson lists as the team’s only center and will be depended upon to do most of the squad’s dirty work in the paint, a tough task when it comes to playing in the Southeastern Conference.
“I love that challenge,” Jackson said. “I like when I
have pressure on me and I feel like I’m going to step up to expectations that everybody has set forth for me because I worked hard over the spring and the summer to get where I need to be for my team to be successful, so I’m really looking forward to this challenge.”
Jackson experienced a bit of pain in his first tune-up, the team’s exhibition-opener last Friday, a 93-56 victory over Albany State (N.Y.).
With less than five minutes to play, Jackson suffered a lower leg injury underneath the Albany State bucket and was later diagnosed with a sprained left ankle.
Although Jackson said he thought he would initially miss two to four weeks, after rehabbing during the weekend he thinks he will be ready for Georgia’s regular-season opener against University of South Carolina-Upstate on Friday.
During his 22 minutes on the floor, however, Jackson amassed seven rebounds, four points, two assists, two blocks and one steal. His bucket at the 11:53 mark in the second half provided the Bulldogs with their largest lead of the game at 76-35.
Now, with the regular season just days away, Jackson understands the importance of his presence on the floor to his team’s triumphs.
“My role is definitely increasing as a leader and I have a lot of experience and I have to bring that to the table to help lead some of our younger guys, so they know the things you have to do to be successful as a team,” he said. “My role is just to be very consistent and bring that toughness that everybody knows Georgia for having.”
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