Back in 2019, Coach Kerrick Jackson walked into Dudy Noble Field as the head coach of the Southern Jaguars. An NCAA first round game against host Mississippi State was set to be played. Halfway through that match-up, Jackson’s Jags led 4-2. The Diamond Dawgs rallied to win 11-6 and marched on to Omaha.
Despite the loss, Southern represented themselves well. Many in these parts were especially impressed with Jackson. It was believed then that the talented coach was going places. That chatter proved to be prophetic.
In 2020, Jackson left Southern to take over as the President of the Major League Baseball draft league. The call to return to the college game was heeded when Jackson accepted the head coaching position at Memphis. After just one season with that set of Tigers, Jackson traded in Memphis blue for Missouri black and gold.
Jackson’s candidacy at Mizzou should have come as a surprise to no one. He served as a Tiger assistant from 2011 to 2015. Jackson knows the campus and the recruiting footprint well. He also knows a thing or two about developing pro players. That is a skill he hopes to use to attract some of the top talents in the region to take Missouri baseball to new heights.
In his first season as the Tiger skipper, Missouri posted a 23-32 record and won nine SEC games. The sledding has been a bit more difficult this year due to some portal losses and injuries to key players. Jackson makes no excuses and shares that Missouri is where he wants to be. In the early stages of our conversation he shared that the head coaching position at Mizzou is the one he has been working towards throughout his career.
In this exclusive interview, Jackson shares his thoughts on his club, his pitching plans for the weekend and what he expects from Mississippi State. This feature is for Genespage.com/247Sports members. If you are not already subscribing, you can do so by clicking the join button in the top right corner of the screen.
