GENTRY -- Garrison Jackson already had a strong work ethic before Justin Bigham ever stepped foot on the Gentry High School campus.
Jackson, a 6-5, 240-pound senior tight end/defensive end was raised the son of farming parents. The family had a dairy farm when Jackson was young, which required the youngster to rise well before the morning sun for 4 a.m. milkings, then repeat that chore in the evenings.
"That was a hard job," Jackson said. "But we are a beef cattle farm now, so it doesn't require as much time. This is a lot better."
Bigham, the third-year Pioneers football coach, said he poured over the Gentry roster when he first arrived at the school and saw that Jackson was just a sophomore, and already standing 6-4. He said was unsure at first if Jackson really was just a 10th grader.
"I was sure hoping what I saw on the roster was correct," Bigham laughed. "When I confirmed that he was a sophomore, that was great news."
Under Bigham's guidance, Jackson has grown into his body, adding about 40 pounds to his long frame over the past three seasons. The added weight and the indisputable talent have put Jackson squarely on the radar of multiple small colleges.
Jackson already owns offers from several schools including Northeastern State in Tahlequah, Okla., and Missouri Southern in Joplin, Mo. Both schools are recruiting Jackson as a tight end, but he's not opposed to adding more weight and shifting to the interior line, he said.
With Jackson providing quarterback Chris Bell a big target in the passing game, the Pioneers are off to a 3-0 start heading into their bye week this week. Gentry opens 4A-1 Conference play next week against Huntsville.
"This has been a great start for us," said Jackson. "We've really executed what the coaches have asked us to do. Every week, they know what our opponent is going to do in our scouting reports and they have us in position to succeed."
Bigham is no stranger to big-time college football. A DeWitt High School graduate and the son of a football coach, Bigham traveled wherever his father landed a coaching gig from places like Helena to Barton, and stints in both Florida and Louisiana.
Bigham played at Ole Miss under both Houston Nutt and Hugh Freeze and was introduced to both a pro-style ground attack and a spread attack.
"What we do here is a combination of both," said Bigham. "We want to be a run-first team, but with the ability to throw. But if you asked me what style of team we are, we'd be more of a run team."
Jackson has played a big role in both, as a blocker on the edge and a reliable receiver. Last week in a 42-7 win against Stilwell, Okla., Jackson caught a touchdown pass on offense and intercepted a pass on defense.
Last season, Garrison finished with 28 receptions for 338 yards and 2 touchdowns. The Pioneers, because of the covid-19 pandemic, were a playoff team in 2020 where all teams in the state who wanted to participate in the postseason could. In the first round of the playoffs, the Pioneers fell to Monticello 36-26 despite having more than a dozen players out under covid-19 protocols.
"We got behind early and just never could overcome those two touchdowns," said Jackson. "But we learned from that and I think that has made us a better team this season. Even though we lost that game, we saw that we could compete and that's been a big confidence boost for us."
With 17 total starters out of 22 back, the fast start to the season has not been a big surprise to the Pioneers. With Jackson and a strong senior class leading the way, Bigham has been able to focus a lot of attention to the younger players in the program to build not only relationships but much-needed depth as well.
For Jackson, he knows his days in a Pioneer uniform are numbered.
"I wish I had three more seasons, but this is it for us seniors," he said. "I'm proud of what we've been able to do and the program we've been able to get started. These coaches have been great and they will continue to do well. I'm just glad to be a part of the foundation for the future."
