by Mark Clements
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| Lee with Carroll Head Coach Jakie Hamilton |
July 23, 2010 - The Carroll High School Bulldogs proved they can be a dominant force in the high school football world last year, after finishing the season with a strong 9-1 record.
Head coach Jackie Hamilton led his team with a charge into the playoffs before losing a shootout to Bogalusa. Despite the early exit this year, the fourth-year coach said that he can see his team putting together another strong finish this season.
“We should be pretty good this year,” Hamilton said. “My only concern right now is depth. If we can stay away from the injury bug we should be very competitive.”Hamilton credits a lot of the team’s success to his coaching staff, and said the assistants have done an excellent job in fulfilling their roles.
“I’m very pleased with the staff I have,” he said. “It’s a young staff, but it’s a very knowledgeable staff. They’ve done a great job at preparing these kids for the next level. They’re always eager to learn, and that makes it just that much better for these younger guys.”
Coach Hamilton has been coaching young athletes for 20 years. Having seen all the ins and outs of the coaching business, Hamilton said his favorite part of the profession is the teaching.
“I love the teaching part,” he said. “Someone asked me the other day if I would prefer college or high school and I said high school because of the teaching part. It’s hands on and you get to mold these boys into young men.”
But the job can’t always be all positives. Hamilton said that while there isn’t much to complain about with being a coach, the biggest downfall is the decrease in family time.
“If coaching has a negative, then it’s the time you spend away from your family,” Hamilton said. “That’s about the only thing I see as a negative part of it.”
Throughout his many years of coaching, Hamilton has had the opportunity to coach some great athletes. Hamilton said some of his favorites in his career are Alexander Washington (Offensive lineman - Ole Miss), Greg James (Safety - ULM) and Desmond Lenard (CB – Grambling State).
“I’ve had some great players come through here and I’ve had an opportunity to have some input in their growth,” Hamilton said.
Along with coaching some great football players, Hamilton has also coached in some great football games. He said one of his highest football coaching moments came in this past season.
“Well, anytime you win they’re all exciting,” Hamilton chuckled. “But I would have to say one of the best was this year when we defeated Rayville at Rayville. They were picked to win the district, and I think that was one of the most enjoyable victories I’ve had.”
And while the head coach has many duties to fulfill on the field, Hamilton said he likes to specialize in helping the defense.
“I’m basically a defensive man,” Hamilton said. “I played defensive back at Grambling, so I’m basically hands on for defense and I turn the offense over to [the assistants].”
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