Trevor Jackson coached his final game in the Christian Fellowship School gymnasium in Thursday’s regular season finale against Heritage Christian Academy. The seven-year head coach of the Lady Eagles will step down at the conclusion of this season.
Though their season is not complete yet, at 16-12 this is Christian Fellowship’s fifth straight winning season under the tutelage of Jackson.
Jackson said he started thinking about it when he was driving over that this was the last time to coach on the CFS floor.
“I tried to savor every moment, thinking about all the hours going back to when Jayden (Jackson) and Gracie (Howard) were fifth and sixth graders until now”, Jackson said. “The countless hours we’ve spent here and how far the program has come. It’s not about me, it’s about the kids always and how far the program has come and to gain respectability across the region for our girls with officials and coaches and everyone to respect the program. Six out of seven years we’ve had double digit wins…five straight winning seasons which has never happened at CFS before. It’s just a testament to the girls.”
Following the win, Jackson was recognized by Christian Fellowship Athletic Director Debbie Lewis for his achievements as a coach and contributions to the program.
Players and coaches wore shirts emblazoned with multiple photos representing the many emotions of Coach Jackson. The idea stemmed from Jackson’s love of the movie Christmas Vacation and a shirt “The Holiday Emotions of Clark Griswald” which Jackson said he wears during Christmas.
Jackson is known for his enthusiasm on the sidelines as well as a towel that is always draped over his shoulder.
“This goes back to my middle school years when I first started coaching when I was younger, like 22, coaching at Heath.” Jackson said. “When I started coaching, one game I had a towel at the end of a timeout and was wiping my brow and it just stuck.”
Jackson added laughing that the towel has probably saved him from saying the wrong thing at times to his players and or officials.
Jackson has shaped a winning mentality and climate for the small Christian school since his first season in 2017-2018. He was also head coach of the softball team from 2014 to 2023 and across the two sports has had the privilege of coaching his daughters Jaycie and Jayden.
Last season, Jackson led the CFS squad to a Kentucky Christian Athletic Conference championship, 4th District runner-up and first ever appearance in the First Region Tournament, finishing with a record of 22-11.
“Honestly, I never thought we could, I hoped we could, and it took a very special group of young ladies over the years”, Jackson said. “We’ve been blessed with tremendous athletes in the last three or four years, tremendous leaders on and off the court, that set the tone for this next group.”
Many of Jackson’s former players were on hand for his final game as head coach of the Lady Eagles.
“I will say, when I came out of the locker room for the first time, I took a deep breath and just kind of looked around”, Jackson said. “It’s emotional. When you think about all of that and the girls that you’ve coached.”
