Jack Haskins knew exactly what toughness was
🎶There won't be any trumpets blowing/Come the judgement day/On the bloody morning after/One in solder rides away...🎶
Dennis Lambert and Brian Potter, "One Tin Soldier," 1969
Jack Haskins had a son who went on to have a nice career with UK and later, Rhode Island. His name was Billy Jack. Billy Jack Haskins won “Mr. Football,” playing for Allan Cox and his Tilghman High “Blue Tornado” in 1992. Jack Haskins was on that coaching staff and returned to a head coaching position when his son had moved on to UK. Haskins was a guy who turned around programs. Haskins turned Heath, Ballard Memorial, and Lone Oak into winners and contenders. Ballard Memorial hadn’t had a winning season in 20-years when Haskins was hired. The “Bombers” won 32-games in four seasons with Haskins at the controls. Lone Oak had been a doormat when Haskins came there, having not had a winning campaign in 13-seasons. Haskins took them to the 4A title game in 2007 and another appearance two years later in 2009. In the second appearance, Lone Oak lost in double OT, 42-39, to Boyle County and its legendary coach, Larry French. Haskins was then hired at McCracken and went 9-3, 9-2, before ultimately retiring. Haskins was a winner, finishing his career 275-124-2 with three appearances in the KHSAA championship game.
HB Lyon, Scouting Director, “KPGFootball”
Paducah, KY: If you spent your formative years around Western Kentucky as I did, there were certain names you just knew. Any “Westerner” would have known coaches like Dan Goble, Allan Cox, Fleming Thornton, David Barnes, Mike Lewis, Dan Haley, and other such football luminaries. You certainly would have also known the name Jack Haskins. One would have known his son, Billy Jack Haskins, too.
The younger Haskins was easy to remember especially because his given name was “Billy Jack.” Most of us who watched “Billy Jack” play remember the conflict in Vietnam and the anti-Vietnam movement across the area.
Most of us knew the song, “One Tin Soldier,” though not its allegorical meaning. Most of us watched the movie, “Billy Jack,” which contained that song on its soundtrack.
We wanted to be Billy Jack. I wanted to be Billy Jack.
I would have taken either, the Haskins version or the movie version. Both were tough, bad dudes.
There was a poignant scene in the movie “Billy Jack” when Billy Jack Laughlin (same surname as the character who played him) has the following discourse, “…[D]o you know what mental toughness is? Well, mental toughness is the ability to accept the fact that you’re human and that you’re going to make mistakes – lots of ’em – all your life. And some of them are gonna hurt people that you love very badly. But you have the guts to accept the fact that you ain’t perfect. And you don’t let your mistakes crush you and keep you from doing the very best that you can.” Tom Laughlin as Billy Jack, 1971.
That is a great scene. That is a great movie.
That aside, if there is a family in all of Kentucky which doesn’t need any explanation about “toughness,” mental or otherwise, that family is the “Haskins.”
“That Billy Jack Haskins may be the best high school football player I have ever seen.”
Fleming Thornton
I was home from college when Coach Fleming Thornton, hearing I was home, came by our house to see me. Coach Thornton and I were close from our days together playing golf. I have written about that in his feature.
In our conversation, somewhere between an exchange of pleasantries and the swapping of “how’s your life going” type information, Thornton asks me the following: “Fletcher, you coming out to watch Hoptown play Tilghman this Friday Night?”
“Yessir, Coach. I thought I might,” I answered him.
“You need to, son. That Billy Jack Haskins may be the best high school football player I have ever seen.”
Can you imagine? A guy like Fleming Thornton, who had won titles in ’65 & ’66 at Hopkinsville High, won another three (3) title in South Carolina, and had coached players the likes of Pete Moore, Herb Covington, Rusty Nunn, Lawrence Brame, Mike Haney, and Mike Lewis calling any kid playing on any Friday night, “…the best high school football player [he’s]…ever seen?”
I wished then [and still do now] that either Jack Haskins or Billy Jack Haskins had been in my house to hear that praise from that legendary coach. If I ever meet either, in this life or the next, I may have to tell them this story.
Billy Jack Haskins went on to experience a great career. Haskins threw for more yards than any QB in Kentucky high school history up until he graduated.
Haskins threw for 2,181-yards and rushed for another 183-yards at UK. Even more importantly, Billy Jack filled the first string at QB in both 1995 and 1996, until a coaching change at UK and a future NFL quarterback in the wings riding the pines (Tim Couch) resulted in Billy Jack’s moving on to Rhode Island.
“Haskins” may be Anglo-Saxon for “tough as all get out.”
Friday Night Fletch
Haskins is tough. I believe the surname “Haskins” is Anglo-Saxon for “tough as all get out.” I may have made up the last part. The name is Anglo-Saxon in origin.
freshman quarterback Pookie Jones during
a photo session during football picture
day August 9, 1990. Jones led the Wildcats
at quarterback for the 1991, 92 and 93 seasons.
Photo by Tim Sharp | Staff
Both of the Haskins men were well renown for their toughness. Jack was no less tough than Billy Jack.
Haskins completed 36-years as a head coach. Haskins made stops along the way at Fulton County, Heath, Calloway County, Ballard Memorial, Graves County, Lone Oak, and finally at McCracken County which was the consolidation version of Reidland, Lone Oak, and Heath
Haskins was a program builder. Haskins was a guy who turned around programs.
Haskins turned Heath, Ballard Memorial, and Lone Oak into winners and contenders. Ballard Memorial hadn’t had a winning season in 20-years when Haskins was hired. The “Bombers” won 32-games in four seasons afterward.
Lone Oak had been a doormat when Haskins came there, having not had a winning campaign in 13-seasons. Haskins took them to the 4A title game in 2007 and another appearance, two years later, in 2009.
Class 4A was “Big Boy” football in those days. Kentucky only had four (4) classifications.
In the second appearance, Lone Oak lost in double OT, 42-39, to Boyle County and its legendary coach, Larry French. If it takes Larry French two overtimes to beat you with the resources and history of “Title Town” behind him, you have done some coaching, my friend.
Haskins was then hired at McCracken. McCracken was a new consolidated high school formed from the merger of Reidland, Heath, and Lone Oak.
As the head of the Mustangs brand, spanking new program, Haskins went 9-3 and 9-2 before ultimately retiring. Haskins was a winner throughout his illustrious career, finishing his 275-124-2, with three appearances in the KHSAA championship game and a winning percentage approaching 70% (.6895785536).
Haskins teams were always prepared and Haskins coached with tremendous passion. Not only did winning mean a lot to Haskins, but teaching young people how to be successful in football and life also held special relevance for him.
Haskins rarely took any of the credit for his accomplishments. Haskins was interviewed on the occasion of his announcing his retirement. Haskins told Kevin Patton with the Courier & Press, “I’ve been fortunate to surround myself with good coaches, great players, and kids who know I respect them. They know I would go to bat for them.”
Haskins went on to say, “I had so much fun. I had a dream job. I did something I wanted to do my whole life.”
Haskins grew up in upstate New York. Haskins came to Murray State to play football and met his future wife, Linda.
The two moved back to New York, initially. Linda wasn’t a fan of the cold weather.
In 1969, the pair came back to Kentucky. Haskins got his first coaching job at Fulton County High.
“They had football (prior to his arrival), but were struggling.” Haskins told Kevin Patton. “We had a lot of fun there that first year. Then I took a job at Heath, their second year for football.”
Haskins continued, “They only scored one touchdown the previous season. I was as green as the kids…I had to learn with them as much as they did with me.”
Haskins did learn. What came from that learning was his building a small school, in Heath, into a formidable program which experienced 16-consecutive winning seasons with Haskins at the controls. Haskins took Heath to the 1975 state title game, losing to Randy Reese and Mighty Ludlow, 7-6.
Hall of Fame coach, Joe Morris, once said about Haskins, “I remember him coaching against my dad in the late ’70s at Heath. Those were always great games and you could tell, even then, Haskins was a great coach.”
Jack Haskins would revolutionize the game of high school football in the west
Friday Night Fletch
Haskins would go on to revolutionize and forever change western-Kentucky, high school football. Most schools around the west were ground and pound types, wishbone and veer. Haskins, at Calloway, implemented the “Run-and-Shoot.”
Haskins had the horses to do it. Enter Pookie Jones, his ultra-talented, multi-threat, QB at Calloway who went on to be a starter at UK in both football and baseball.
Pookie Jones would win Mr. Football in 1989, throwing the football 50-60 times a game. “I was the only coach at the time who even thought about passing,” Haskins was quoted as saying. “There was no way I could play with (Paducah) Tilghman and Mayfield if I were to just run it at them.”
There it is again, the toughness we discussed when kicking off this feature. The ability to accept the facts as they are. The guts to accept you’re not perfect. The ability to not allow mistakes to keep you from your very best.
🎶On the bloody morning after/
One tin soldier rides away...🎶
Dennis Lambert and Brian Potter, "One Tin Soldier," 1969
This is Friday Night Fletch, reporting for KPGFootball, reminding you to PLAY THROUGH THE WHISTLE!
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