Samuel Dorsey Jackson’s love affair with sports had its beginning in a small schoolhouse in Mountain City, Tennessee, where as a little boy he was the catcher on the baseball team. At Emory & Henry College in Virginia, Jackson lettered in baseball, basketball, and football and was captain of the 1916 cagers. After serving in World War I, he returned to E&H as football coach for three years. At the same time, he began his illustrious career as an official. The first football game he officiated was in 1919 at Bristol, Tennessee. Jackson was in the stands, and they asked him if he would come down and call the game. He did, and the rest is history. In 1927 Jackson organized the Appalachian Board of Approved Officials. For thirty-four years, this was Jackson’s life, his joy, and his hobby, all done for a mere pittance. An ardent and thorough student of the game, Jackson spent many hours in teaching the rules and the mechanics throughout Tennessee. He was a member of the National Federation Interscholastic Football Rules Committee, as well as an official in the Southern and Southeastern Conferences, and was rated the top head linesman in the SEC until his retirement in 1947. Through the hard work, dedication, and pride of sports pioneers like Samuel Dorsey Jackson, Tennessee sports thrives today, and for that we thank him.
