Weatherford High School freshman Jackson Smith plays basketball and golf for the Eagles.

On his debut season for the Eagles basketball team: “I had a lot of fun.” Weatherford advanced to the 4A state championship game, where it lost a narrow defeat to Douglass, 48-44 in Oklahoma City.

“For me, personally, it went great,” Smith said. “Not much as an individual, but as a team, I was grateful to be a part of all of our success.”

The greatest adjustment Smith had to make stepping up from junior high to varsity hoops was “the level of defense.”

“Moves I could use in middle school and get an open bucket, half of those don’t work in high school,” Smith said, “so I think I’m still kinda adjusting.”

Smith considers himself a solid role player and passer on the court. The sport has taught him “responsibility and how to handle adversity.” His goal is to win a state title before he graduates.

On the golf course, Smith and his teammates “didn’t do great as a team,” but they had a good time. He considers it his second-best sport.

“My dad has been playing forever, so I just decided to try it out one time,” Smith said. “And then I just kinda liked playing and kept going out to the course.”