KICKOFF COUNTDOWN: ACA's Burton works through personal trials to compete

Alabama Christian’s Jackson Burton lost both his parents but has persevered through it all to compete in what is a relatively new sport for him. (Tim Gayle)

By TIM GAYLE

Football, Jackson Burton admits, is a little bit of an escape from the challenges and burdens he faces in the real world.

“It’s a getaway,” he said. “I get to come out here, I get to have fun. My teammates just make everything so much better. They’re always supportive, plus I have friends inside of school. Football is definitely a getaway -- all of the sports I play are -- and it’s really helped me through everything.”

He was a self-proclaimed “mama’s boy” when he was growing up, closer to his mother until cancer claimed her seven years ago. That tragedy drew him closer to his father, a person he admired until he died unexpectedly from a heart attack 10 months ago. 

That type of personal setback could prove to be mentally challenging for any teenager but the Alabama Christian Academy sophomore’s personality and character, along with football and baseball, have helped him persevere in spite of life’s obstacles. 

“You look at it like if any kid had an excuse … but this kid’s got a good attitude, he does well in school, the kids and the teachers love him,” ACA coach Michael Summers said. “What he’s overcome already is beyond what most kids ever really have to endure.”

He’s a favorite among his teammates, hitting the field early and staying late in an effort to learn the game of football that he first acquired a taste for two years ago at Floyd Middle Magnet School. 

“I didn’t even know it was possible to learn as much as I did,” said Burton in reflecting on his offseason workouts in July. “I have learned so much information, even from the spring, coming out after baseball and putting on the pads for two or three weeks. I learned so much more than I had ever learned.” 

When he left Floyd for Alabama Christian last summer, he already knew he would have to sit out a year from varsity competition to comply with Alabama High School Athletic Association rules governing transfers. He took a trip to his father’s native Iran, missing all of the team’s summer workouts. 

“I met all my dad’s family, saw where he grew up,” Burton said. “It was definitely different, being an American, going to a country like Iran. But they treat you very well over there and everyone is very nice and respectful. It was definitely very different, culture wise.”

When he returned for preseason practice, the experience was unlike anything he had ever prepared for.

“He wanted to play quarterback because he had a strong arm,” Summers recalled. “That got shot down pretty quick.”

“I showed up the first day and wanted to play quarterback because in middle school I did throw a little bit,” Burton said. “Then I got fired from that job. I came to high school thinking maybe I could do it because my baseball background as a catcher, I can heave it. But I tried and it didn’t go my way.

“When I first got here, I did feel lost because at Floyd, you do basic stuff -- you warm up, then you go into offense or defense. But, here, there’s stations. I never learned how to tackle at Floyd. Coming here was definitely a lot different, but I adapted pretty well.”

He was limited to playing tight end on the junior varsity squad as he learned the game of football.  

“From the start, he was a really good teammate,” Summers said. “I can remember a JV game at St. James and he was playing offense but wasn’t playing defense. And during a defensive huddle, he was giving water to the defensive players.” 

Three months into his freshman year, he took a class trip to Boston. While he was gone, his father had a fatal heart attack. His aunts, who now take care of Burton and his sister, made the decision to wait until he returned to inform him. 

 “I left for Boston, my dad dropped me off here,” Burton said. “It was a great trip Then I came back, it was almost 1 o’clock in the morning, and they explained everything to me. It was insane that happened. I go away for four or five days and I come back to news like that.” 

Most high school players never have to deal with the loss of a parent. Burton was familiar with the feeling after watching his mother die from cancer six years earlier. 

“I didn’t know how serious it was,” he recalled. “Later in the year, she passed away from it. As a third grader, I didn’t really get to grow up much with her, but being a mama’s boy, that was pretty tough. But my dad was awesome through it and my aunts have been awesome through all of it.”

His mother’s sister and father’s sister are Burton’s biggest supporters and will be at Catholic for ACA’s season opener on Sept. 1.

“It’s very different,” he said. “My dad’s sister, when he passed away, she was in town to be with my sister and I still live in the same house, she just moved in with us. She’s done an amazing job for me and my sister. And I have another aunt who has helped me through everything, tells me stuff I need to know about school and if I need to go to school early, she’ll offer to take me. They all work together and do a great job of it.”

On a team with no returning starters on offense and just three on defense, the newest varsity member is part of a three-man rotation at tight end and will likely start on defense as well.  

“He’s a really good tight end,” Summers said. “He runs really good routes. He does a good job of reading what the defender is doing. We give our tights ends a lot of choice routes and he does a really, really good job of finding that grass.” 

His defensive position at outside linebacker, Burton is quick to admit, is a little more difficult to pick up.

“It’s very new,” he said. “I’ve never played defense before. Last year, I played a little scout team defense but I never knew what I was doing. I had never learned to tackle until this summer. It’s way different from anything I’ve ever done.

“At Floyd, they would always say ‘be physical’ but you can’t really show somebody what physicality is. At Floyd, they’d say it but here, you really learn how to be physical. It’s definitely the biggest adjustment I have to make.” 

His coach believes Burton can be an impact player on that side of the ball. 

“At outside linebacker, he plays it the way we want him to play it and knows his assignments,” Summers said. “And he’s a pretty big kid. He can play inside linebacker, he can play outside linebacker, he can play defensive end if we wanted him to. With what we ask our outside linebackers to do, he’s really hard to throw over and being that flat-curl defender, he can affect a route. So not only does he know his technique and know his assignment, but because of his frame he’s a guy who has a presence out there.” 

Burton still has a lot to learn, but not surprisingly he spoke of his football-playing friends when asked about his goals for this season.

“What I want to get out of this year is to help my teammates win a region championship,” he said. “But I do want to be more physical, learn how to tackle better and get more football IQ.”