As one of Georgia’s top high school baseball programs, Houston County has won consistently throughout the years, including state championships in 2021 and 2023 under current head coach Matt Hopkins.
Hopkins was also part of Houston County’s two other state titles in 2014 and 2016 as an assistant coach on former head coach Jason Brett’s staff.
Hopkins’ solid coaching, and recognizing how to succeed with the talent he has, is one of the reasons Houston County has remained successful for such an extended period.
That’s been the case these past two seasons. With the departure of heavy hitters like Drew Burress, Andrew Dunford, Coleman Willis, and Gage Harrelson, Hopkins and his coaching staff have had to change their approach at the plate.
“We are playing a different brand of baseball than we did a couple of years ago,” Hopkins said. “When we had those guys like Drew, Andrew, Coleman, and Gage, and even other power hitters, we were able to drive the ball out of the park.”
While that meant scoring runs, it also meant the Bears just didn’t run a whole lot on the bases.
“We weren’t trying to hit and run or steal bases because we didn’t want to run into outs,” Hopkins said.
As Burress and other homerun hitters left the program, Hopkins turned to the players who could run – and run fast. It was time to play a little small ball. It was time for Kendall Jackson.
A speedy outfielder, Jackson set the school record for stolen bases last season with 39. He broke the previous record of 35 stolen bases in a season, which belonged Harralson, who is now hitting leadoff for the Florida State Seminoles.
Fast forward to this season, and Jackson, a senior, has now moved into the leadoff role. With barely a third of the season complete, Jackson already has 27 stolen bases. Hopkins thinks Jackson will shatter his own record of 39 stolen bases by a lot.
“Right now, Kendall is on pace to steal anywhere from 60 to 70 bases,” Hopkins said.
The current brand of Bears baseball has suited Jackson quite nicely.
Hopkins said that Jackson playing under and watching Harralson in previous seasons has helped him quite a bit. Jackson also hit in the No. 2 spot in the batting order last year behind leadoff hitter Vick Gann, so he was able to observe and learn from the on-deck circle.
Now, Jackson hitting lead off has helped Houston County in their approach at the plate and on the bases.
“We are utilizing Kendall’s speed to our advantage,” Hopkins said. “We’re trying to get him to third base with less than two outs, and if we can do that, we are able to score from a lot of different angles.”
Through the Bears’ first 12 games of the season, Jackson has a red hot .510 batting average and an even better on-base percentage of .613. For a speedy leadoff hitter, getting on base is the key.
Jackson has at least one stolen base in 11-of-12 games so far this season. On March 7 in a double header against crosstown rival Northside, Jackson stole six bases over the two games, including four bases stolen in the first game, leading the Bears’ attack in the two-game sweep.
Even the best base stealers will get caught trying to steal a base. For Jackson, that has happened once out of the 28 attempts.
As good as he has been at the plate, Jackson has turned into a solid outfielder for Houston County as their centerfielder.
“We are blessed with three good outfielders, but Kendall can really go get it, and I think he gives us a calming presence being in the middle,” Hopkins said.
Hopkins said that while the speed is obvious, Jackson has improved his overall defensive abilities.
“Kendall has really come a long way with his arm strength,” Hopkins said. “One of the early knocks on him was in that area, but not anymore. He can not only track balls down out there, but he can also get it back in much better than before. He has really turned into a complete outfielder and baseball player overall.”
Hopkins said Jackson has committed to continue his baseball career at Chattahoochee Valley Community College in Alabama.
