There’s been a familiar and friendly voice for Annawan-Wethersfield football fans for nearly a half century.

Rod Jackson of Mineral started doing the PA for the Annawan Braves in the fall of 1978 and picked up the same duties with the start of the Annawan-Wethersfield co-op in 2008 and has been doing it ever since, 46 years and counting.

“People ask me how come I keep doing it. I say, ‘Hey, I have the best seat in the house.’ I love football,” said Jackson, who first worked in the press box keeping the yards and downs to go. “When it’s hot out, we’ve got AC and when it’s cold we’ve got heaters up there. If it’s raining, I’m inside. Yeah, I enjoy it a lot.”

He says his wife, Renee, “knows I love it. She puts up with it.”

Jackson, who is an icon in Mineral and Annawan, is known for some signature calls, especially back in the day when Annawan star Chris Foes played in the early 2000s.

“Man, what a running back. There were so many times he’d break free and I’d say, ‘Chris Foes, there he goes,’” Jackson said.

He has fond memories of Braves football, including players like Ronnie Nelson of the class of 1981 (“what a running back he was”), Brian Childs (’98) rushing for over 200 yards in the playoffs and when the 1988 team upset No. 1-ranked Cambridge in the first round.

“Man, what a team. We beat Cambridge, who was ranked No. 1, and then lost 9-0 to Alexis in the rain and mud. Think we should have won pretty easily, but I think we looked past them,” Jackson said.

“We’ve been a run-happy team most of the time I’ve been announcing with Coach (Jim) Frankenreider. He loved to run the ball,” he said of the late Annawan coach.

Now, he says proudly, “I’m glad we’re the Titans.”

Jackson is anything but a homer, expressing his excitement for both teams.

“I get excited. I try to get excited for all the teams. Even the teams we’re playing,” he said. “I try not to be that announcer that’s just pro Annawan-Wethersfield. If the other team has a good play, too, I try to speak up and get excited for the other side, too.”

For one game last year at Wethersfield, he was asked to tone down his excitement by the officials.

“The ref came up and asked who was the announcer. I said, ‘I am,’ and he goes, ‘we have a rule tonight. You can not say a word until the play is dead,’” Jackson said. “You know, usually when there’s a play on the field, I’ll say, ‘there as handoff to Brody Childs and a gain of 3.’ Or if he breaks down the sidelines, ‘Brody is still on his feet.’

“I couldn’t say a word until the play was completely blown dead and the crowd was looking up and saying how come Rod is not speaking. That was very hard for me to do it that way, but that was what the ref wanted so I did it.”

Jackson gained an affection for football, even though he never played it in high school, opting for cross country along with track and basketball.

There was good reason he didn’t play. He probably would have got hurt.

“I loved football but when I was a freshman I got a standing ovation because I broke 5-foot and 100 pounds. I was not a big kid,” he said. “By time I was a senior, i was almost 5-10, 145. I was pretty a good runner, so I ran cross country.

Annawan recently named its newly remodeled press box as the “Rod Jackson Press Box,” an honor he humbly accepted.

“I told Matt Nordstrom, the superintendent, ‘You don’t have to do that. I. love doing this.’ He said, ‘Rod, no we’re going to do this for you,’” Jackson said. “It was quite the honor. I hope I live up to what they say about me. That’s my hope.”

Even when the Titans are on the road, Jackson will find himself called into duty while watching the live stream in his son-in-law’s (Chad Gripp) garage in Bradford.

“Last year we were watching the live stream and the volume wasn’t working so a couple people asked me, ‘Rod can you tell us what’s going on?’ That was kind of weird,” he said.

Jackson plans to keep calling the Titans games as long as the Good Lord allows him.

“I’m 69. I don’t know. I figure as long as Annawan has a football team and they still want me, I’ll do it. If my health stays good at least five (more) years,” he said.

Roach hanging up his mic: Also wanted to make mention of my friend, Neal Roach, the former Ohio Bulldogs basketball coach, who has done the PA for Downs Tri-Valley since it picked up football in 2002. He is retiring at the end of this season after 23 years.

A popular teacher/coach at Tri-Valley for 28 years, Roach is well known for his trademark “Big Dog,” deep voice on the PA.

Kevin Hieronymus has been the BCR Sports Editor since 1986. Contact him at khieronymus@bcrnews.com