By Bob Sutton
Special to The Alamance News
Jackson Brooks, who had been the only soccer coach for Southeast Alamance’s boys’ and girls’ teams since the school opened two years ago, is returning to college.
Brooks has departed Southeast as he prepares to enter graduate school at the University of Alabama.
Brooks guided the boys’ team to the 2024 Mid-Carolina Conference championship, marking the first league title in any sport at the school. The girls’ team won a state playoff game in its first season.
“The seniors from this past year on both teams are the ones to do all the good stuff,” Brooks said.
Brooks was there from the start in his first such coaching assignments.
“I’m so glad that I did,” he said. “It was a great experience … Winning that first conference championship, I think we did a really good job.”
Last year’s 18-7 record gave the boys’ team a cumulative record of 33-14 in two seasons. The girls’ team had a two-year record of 23-17-2.
Chauncey Brummell has been hired as the next boys’ soccer coach and William Henderly will be the new girls’ soccer coach.
As a new school, Southeast teams have been filled with underclassmen. Brooks said there were six freshmen with key roles on the first boys’ team and other newcomers trying to mesh.
“Those guys coming from Eastern (Alamance) and Southern (Alamance) had never really played with each other,” he said.
Brooks, a 2028 Western Alamance graduate, is a younger brother of Western coach Camden Brooks, who has directed teams to three state championships (two boys, one girls).
At Alabama, Jackson Brooks will pursue a master’s degree in medieval studies, a two-year program in the history department. He’s an undergraduate of Barton College.
Brooks, who also coached on the travel team circuit, said he’d like to coach again after he completes more college work.
“I do love it,” he said.
