By Andrew Cato, ShowMe Times Sports Editor

If you saw any of the Mason children today, chances are you wouldn’t recognize them.

When the family moved to the St. Louis area in the fall of 2007, Jackson was in fifth grade; Mabree was in third grade; and Davis was in kindergarden.


Chris and Janet, on the other hand, haven’t changed a bit. Chris, the former music minister at FBC Dexter is now the worship pastor of First Baptist Arnold, in Arnold, Mo. Janet is now the music teacher at Fox Elementary school.

Last Saturday, Jackson’s freshman football team - the Seckman Jaguars - took on the Poplar Bluff Mules in their season finale. The oldest Mason child is slowly becoming both a young man and an outstanding football player.

The Jackson many of you remember is gone, his small stature replaced by a 6’ 3”, 200 pound frame. He is now a tight end, occasionally moving out to the slot, and is also a defensive end.

The Jaguars opened up Saturday’s contest with a bang, picking off Poplar Bluff’s quarterback on the first play of the game. Seckman has a potent rushing attack, led by Cole Luaders, who had three touchdowns and over 100 yards on the ground in the contest. Luaders - a great soccer player - also handles kickoff duties for the team, and had several kicks called for touchbacks during the game.


Seckman’s defense was dominant throughout the first half, forcing three turnovers and not giving up any points.


“We’ve forced a lot of turnovers in the rest of our games,” Mason said. “We average around two, maybe two and a half per game.”

Mason mainly plays offense, and he is an exceptional blocker. On Luader’s third touchdown of the game, a 50 yard scamper to the end zone, Mason had a monster block on a Poplar Bluff linebacker that made the play possible. His aggressive style punished Poplar Bluff defenders all game long.

He also runs crisp, precise routes in the passing game, and shows great finesse when catching the ball. The young squad doesn’t throw the ball a lot, but when you see a ball go Mason’s way, you can be sure it’s going to be caught.


His only catch of the day came on a 3rd & 3 at midfield. The Jag’s were driving down the field, but needed a big play to keep the drive alive. Mason ran a crossing route, just behind the PB Linebackers. The throw was a tad high, but Mason left his feet to haul in the ball and move forward for a 10 yard gain and a first down.

“I’ve had enough [catches] for my first year,” he said. “I think we’re going to start throwing more next year once we grow as a team, and our quarterback develops his arm more.”

The Jaguars would go on to blow out the Mules with a 28-8 final score, and improve their record to 6-2 on the season.


Seckman’s only two losses on the year came from perennial football powerhouse Webster Groves and Kirkwood, a game that many feel the Jag’s could have won.

Mason was pretty happy with his team’s performance in their final game of the 2011 season.

“The first quarter, we came out and drove the ball right down their throats. We kept running outside and picking them apart that way,” he said after the game. “We couldn’t really run up the middle on them, so we kept it all off-tackle. Defensively, we had that interception the first play of the game, took that down and scored pretty quick. It was 20-0 before you really knew it.”

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Despite his success on the offensive side of the ball, Jackson has seen limited playing time on defense this season. He expressed a strong desire to be able to play more defensively next season.

“I wish I could get more in on defense - I like hitting kids,” Mason said, laughing. “The blocking is all good and everything, you get to put people on their backs a couple times, but I like defense better - it’s more physical.”


Most kids would be sad that the football season was ending, but not Mason: he’s going to be a three-sport athlete this year. Jackson will begin wrestling practice in a few short weeks, and both he and his father Chris mentioned him playing lacrosse in the spring, as well.

Jackson reflected his attitude towards defense when he was asked about why he wanted to play lacrosse - the sheer physicality of the game.

“I want to play lacrosse in the spring,” he said with a look of sheer intensity. “It’s obvious - I get to hit people!”