W.S. “Pedie” Jackson

William Senter “Pedie” Jackson, was a native of Johnson City, Tennessee. A charter member of the Emory & Henry Sports Hall of Fame in 1972, Jackson is remembered for intensity and his drive to win which produced a record of 68-19-3 over nine seasons.

In his first year at the helm in 1927, Emory & Henry posted a 9-0 record to earn a Smoky Mountain Athletic Conference Championship. The team repeated the feat in 1928, this time winning each of their 10 games en route to another league title. During that period, E&H notched eight consecutive shutouts and added another nine in 1932-33. Emory & Henry won 10 games in 1933, picking up another SMAC championship.

Although he is remembered mostly for his accomplishments as a football coach, Jackson was a standout as a player under Thomas B. “Bingo” Fullerton and also played baseball for the College. He received an A.B. degree in 1920.

He also served Emory & Henry as a basketball coach and athletics director. During the 1933 season, the team won 15 consecutive games to start the year. Jackson was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame in 1979.

Jackson got his start in coaching at the high school level in Texas before moving back to Bristol, Virginia. The four years prior to arriving at Emory & Henry, Jackson coached at Concord College in Athens, West Virginia where he put up a 23-6-3 record. He left Emory & Henry after the 1935 season and spent his final two years coaching at King College in Bristol, Tennessee.

Born on October 19, 1898, William S. “Pedie” Jackson died on August 31, 1938 at the age of 39.