“I want to get better each and every game. I would like to be a good leader and be able to put the team on my back if I need to. I want to take over games and help pick up my teammates when they’re down,” said Tyrie Jackson, a 6’0”, 190-pound guard for the Tift County Blue Devils.
Jackson is a junior who already plays like a seasoned veteran. Over the course of his young career, his teams have never finished outside of the Final Four. As a freshman, the Blue Devils boasted a team that included several future Division I players. Popular belief was that if Tift couldn’t win a title with that team, they couldn’t win a title at all.
Nobody told that to last year’s Blue Devils. Tift, led by Tyrie’s brother, Tadric Jackson, shocked the state and won the Class AAAAAA state championship. Now Tadric is a freshman guard at Georgia Tech, the Blue Devils are loaded once again, and Tyrie is one of the featured players in Tift’s program.
According to head coach Eric Holland, Tyrie is an explosive player who can both shoot and play defense. He handles the ball well and can shut down opposing players on the opposite end of the floor. “He plays very hard and is a mid to high major player,” said Coach Holland.
At the time of this writing, Tift was a perfect 6-0 and Jackson was averaging 18 points, four rebounds, three steals, and four assists per game. “I just want to make play plays and stop the other team on defense. I like to keep the tempo up and make shots. I just love the game,” Tyrie said.
His love for the game has inspired him to become the best player he possibly can be. And even though he’s just a junior, he’s already pretty good. With talent comes responsibility, and Tyrie understands what his role on the team is. He wants to lead and be the guy his coaches and teammates can count on to get the job done. That’s something he learned from watching Tadric play.
“Tadric taught me to be a leader, to set a good example for others. I learned to stay focused from him. He helped keep me in the right place,” Tyrie said.
During last year’s state title run, Tyrie shared the moment with Tadric. Throughout the playoffs, Tadric showed just how 
good of a player he was, and Tyrie was right there with him along the way. In the title game, Tyrie scored six points and gained confidence with each passing minute. As the game wore on, he saw that Tift was gradually gaining more and more control over the game. One by one, key players on the opposing Wheeler Wildcats fouled out. By the end of the third quarter, Tift had the game in hand.
“That’s when I knew we would win. When the last second ticked off the clock, I can’t explain the feeling. I cried. Everything was good. I loved being out there with my brother. When he gave me the ball and I could do my thing, it was special. I miss playing with him,” Tyrie said.
Though Tyrie still has two years left, he is already looking to the future. And maybe, just maybe, he will get to share the court with his brother one more time. Thus far in the season, Tadric is getting about 14 minutes per game off the bench and is averaging just over seven points per game with the Yellow Jackets. Hopefully, Tyrie will have the opportunity to play with Tadric at Georgia Tech. He has several solid Division I schools looking at him already, and Georgia Tech is one of them. “I haven’t made a decision where I want to go just yet. But I would love to play with Tadric again,” he said.
Tyrie’s Favorites:
• NBA Player: Chris Paul
• Team: Los Angeles Clippers
• Superpower: Jump super high
• Place to travel: Las Vegas
• Sport you wish you could play: Football
• Person to meet: Blake Griffin
Player Spotlight/South Georgia/February 2015
Tyrie Jackson
Tift County High School
Tifton, Georgia
Robert Preston Jr.
Jackson set to lead Tift on another title run
