Houston returns to coach at his alma mater
2008 alum joins Knight staff to coach special teams, wide receivers, boys track
Photos courtesty of Houston, Victory Bell picture repost from Austin American-Statesman.
After coaching for two years at Elgin, Coach Jarred Houston has returned to his alma mater to coach the sports he played well as a Knight back in the day.
July 4, 2019
We’ll call it a comeback.
2008 Mac alum Jarred Houston has returned to Sunshine Drive as a member of the athletic coaching staff, Houston announced via Twitter on Monday.
Houston knows a little something about comebacks as it pertains to Mac football.
On Nov. 2, 2007, Houston was a senior running back on a Knights team that trailed the Travis Rebels, 28-0, at halftime. Two quarters and four overtime periods later, the Knights had outscored the Rebels, 43-7, to secure a 43-35 victory that kept the Victory Bell on the north side.
Former AISD athletic director and Travis quarterback and head football coach Tommy Cox called the 4-OT thriller “one of the best high school games that I ever saw.”
Houston played defensive back in college first at Howard Payne and later at Sam Houston State. He recorded 10 tackles, 3 unassisted, playing for the Yellow Jackets as a freshman in 2008.
Houston told MacJournalism he could not be happier to be back at Mac.
“It’s a dream come true: to have the opportunity to be able to come back and pour into lives. I’m beyond thrilled!”
Houston said in his tweet that he will serve in the fall as the varsity co-special teams coordinator and as a wide receivers coach. In the spring, he will serve as the boys head track coach. The past two seasons, Houston served on the football coaching staff at Elgin High School.
Houston said the 2007 Battle of the Bell victory was his fondest memory as a Mac player, but MacJournalism uncovered that Houston had many other highlight moments while wearing blue and gray on Friday nights.
According to The Allandale Neighbor, on Sept. 17, 2007, Houston rushed for 108 yards on 13 carries in leading the Knights to a 42-14 win over Lanier in the team’s district opener. According to the sports website at Howard Payne University, one of two colleges where Houston played football, Houston was an all-district running back and also made the all-district academic team in his senior year.
He also excelled in track and field as a sprinter. When asked to recall his favorite track experience, Houston told MacJournalism, “After the joy that comes with accomplishing personal bests throughout a season, my favorite memory would be standing on the medal stand at the district track meet.”
In addition to coaching football and track, Houston will serve as a special education teacher in the SCORES program.
VanLawrance Franks • Jul 6, 2019 at 4:02 pm
Van Franks WR senior during the 2017 season. The 4 OT victory againat Travis is exactly the fight Coach Houston brings to McCallum on and off the field. I am crazy excited and proud of Coach Houston returning home. The understanding of what it means to be a Knight and the impact he will have on the student athletes at McCallum will be something special for years to come.