First-year MASE football team: 'No weight room, no locker room, no anything'

Julius Jackson thought he was up against the eight-ball when he was at Hillcrest a couple of seasons ago, coaching a football team with limited resources and dwindling numbers.

Turns out, he didn't know how good he had it.

"You know what, I thought I was limited at Hillcrest," he said. "But we had two gyms, we had a weight room, we had two big old practice fields. Normally, I'm not an optimist; I kind of see things for what they are.

"But the challenges here have surpassed my expectations."

"Here" is Memphis Academy of Science and Engineering, a charter school that is embarking on its maiden voyage as a TSSAA football program this fall. The Phoenix will compete in Region 8-1A — the state's smallest public school classification — along with Freedom Prep, another first-year program.

MASE's region includes schools like Booker T. Washington, Hillcrest, Oakhaven and Westwood, programs that have long track records but which have fallen on hard times recently due to dwindling enrollments. Two others, KIPP and Middle College, are newer programs that have found their niche as consistent playoff contenders.

But the thing those schools have that MASE doesn't is a foundation upon which to build. Jackson and his little band of players are doing the same this year.

"No weight room, no locker room, no anything," Jackson said. "The kids store stuff in my (office). But that's all they know. And I'm not going to let that be an excuse. But it's definitely a challenge when you don't have your own facilities.

"When I first got to Hillcrest, we started with 16 kids. Pretty much what we've got out here now. I tell them all the time; I don't really feel sorry that we have a small number because I've done it all before. I'm just very excited to build this from the ground up, literally from nothing."

At a practice last week in preparation for a trip to Fayette-Ware for their debut on Aug. 18, the Phoenix had only 12 players. Four were missing for various reasons but even at their peak, it's going to be an uphill battle for the team this year.

"I'm not coming off the field," said junior Tony Rush, who will play center, linebacker and handle kicking duties.

Adds senior wide receiver/defensive back Orlando Manning, "We're going to be on the field 24/7. And we're just going to have to learn to get used to it."

The lack of equipment is another challenge, said Rod Gaston, who coached at Central and Bishop Byrne and is now the executive director at MASE, which has its classroom space inside of Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church.

"When it comes to equipment ... so many things are expensive now," he said. "But having a football program builds pride in your school. And I think one of the things that we were creative with was in saying, 'OK, how do we go about getting equipment?'

"When schools were looking for games ... we asked, 'Well, could you donate some equipment?' We weren't asking for their money, we were asking for equipment. And it went over well, it really did. There were a lot of schools that were willing to help us get off the ground."

The practice pants may have come from Central. And the jerseys may have come from Tipton-Rosemark. But the players said this year will be about establishing an identity that uniquely says MASE.

Last season, several of the Phoenix played for Catholic as part of a co-op program between the two schools. But now ...

"It feels great to be independent," Rush said. "Rather than being partnered up with another school, we can be our own team. A major problem last year was we never got any recognition. It wasn't like 'Catholic and MASE,' it was just 'Catholic football team.'

"Now, we need to make a story. Rather than just saying, 'Oh, those small-school kids got beat by everybody.' I don't want that. I want us to be known for something. 'Those kids had only 11 on the field but they did something this year.'"

Reach John Varlas at john.varlas@commercialappeal.com or on Twitter @johnvarlas.