WKU men’s basketball assistant coach Darryl Jackson earns local recognition

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – Over the summer, one WKU assistant coach earned a spot on VIP Bowling Green’s 40 under 40 list.

During the year, it’s often players and head coaches that get most of the attention, but behind every program are assistants who put in just as many countless hours to the team and to the community.

Darryl Jackson is heading into his fourth season as an assistant coach for WKU men’s basketball, but his dedication to his job isn’t confined to the doors of Diddle Arena.

Jackson aims to close the gap between different cultures and communities using the game of basketball as a vehicle to do it.

“Basketball is a language and I think, in a lot of ways,  no matter where two people are from, we have a common goal and an objective,” Jackson said. “No matter the language you might speak and no matter where you’re from, the basketball court’s an even playing field to be able to learn from one another and use it to communicate. You hope to win together.”

Winning together isn’t always about just in a game. Basketball is full of lessons and experiences that help you win in life.

Jackson says the game has cultivated him into who he is today, but he wouldn’t be the kind of coach he is without letting his players cultivate him as well.

“If you don’t learn from them, you won’t grow. You won’t be able to stay in tune with the times,” Jackson said. “You want them to be happy and successful, and sometimes things become outdated and you don’t want to be too prideful to think that there’s only one way for something to work. I think that these young people are very bright. They are the leaders of tomorrow and I’m learning from them every single day.”

Basketball has taken Jackson all over the world, but his current roots are in Bowling Green because of the shared vision the Hilltoppers and the community have to invest in more than just the game.

“It’s the people, man. It’s very easily said. I think that everybody being involved in this thing is a very good reason to want to stay involved and continue to move forward,” Jackson said. “There’s no other place to want to win as far as I’m concerned other than Western Kentucky.”

Jackson and the Hilltoppers unofficially open the season in an exhibition matchup with Indiana on Sunday, October 25, in Evansville.

More information on the full list of BG’s 40 under 40 list can be found here.