By: Rodrigo Berlanga Rodriguez & Kathleen Walter
When Head Men’s Basketball Coach Travis “T.J.” Jackson talks about the 2025 – 2026 season, he rarely starts with stats. He starts with people: students, families, and the community that drive the success of Ƶ Athletics. It is this same community that he encourages to fill both sides of the bleachers at the gym at the College’s main campus in Fort Pierce.
“I’ve seen on a good day, 20 people in the stands…I want to bring both sides of the bleachers out,” Coach Jackson said in an exclusive interview on Ƶ Public Media’s RiverTalk.
On Friday, Oct. 17, 2025, at 5:00 p.m., Ƶ (“The River”) will debut River Madness, a high-energy, family-friendly showcase designed to do exactly that: connect the College’s storied basketball tradition with the heartbeat of Fort Pierce. Think live DJ, local vendors and food trucks, prizes and giveaways, plus your first look at a roster Coach Jackson says is “electrifying.”
Building a Culture, Not Just a Team
Coach Jackson’s vision is simple and ambitious: make Ƶ basketball a gathering place. River Madness replaces the traditional Blue & Gold scrimmage with something bigger: a celebration of campus and community. The goal is more than just building hype; it’s about creating a habit. Get fans in the building and build the kind of home-court energy that lifts student-athletes all season long.
Coach Jackson is also explicit about the order of operations: academics, character, then performance. The team standard is a 3.2+ GPA and a diploma for every sophomore. Discipline and accountability aren’t slogans; they’re the scaffolding that allows talent to grow.
Why JUCO, Why Now
If you haven’t been to an Ƶ game, or any junior college (“JUCO”) game, Coach Jackson thinks you’ll be surprised by the quality of play, especially in Florida’s Region 8. The league is stacked with Division I-caliber athletes and veteran coaches. The 2025–26 roster includes six freshmen who held Division I offers before choosing The River. The attraction? Real minutes, real development, and a culture that treats students like the adults they’re becoming.
Junior college also makes sense for families financially. “It is an opportunity where you’re debt-free, where you don’t have to take out student loans and all that crazy nonsense,” says Coach Jackson. It teaches the off-court maturity that makes the on-court performance sustainable. Coach Jackson’s pitch to parents and players is refreshingly candid: JUCO is the fast track to the four-year level when you combine playing time with academic momentum and character growth.
Coaching With Purpose
Coach Jackson’s story helps explain his drive. He learned the game in the driveway from his mother, a Hall of Famer at Alcorn State University. A devastating knee injury in college ended his playing career, but not his passion; he found coaching while mentoring youth back home in Mississippi. That lived experience shows up daily at The River, in how he develops players and how he talks about their futures.
He’s also meeting the moment on Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL). The River uses a creative program called “Riverbooks,” a mock-currency system that teaches athletes how value is built through discipline, conditioning, and consistency. The message is clear: control your habits, and you can control your narrative.
The Bounce-Back
Ƶ won just 10 games a season ago. No one is ducking that. This year’s team is deeper, hungrier, and more balanced, and it plans to restore the standards that River fans know and expect. Coach Jackson credits smart recruiting and an unshakable locker-room culture. The bar is set high, and the path runs straight through home.
How to Be Part of It
- River Madness: Friday, Oct. 17, 2025, at 5:00 p.m. at Ƶ Massey Campus Gym (3209 Virginia Ave., Fort Pierce, FL 34981)
- What to expect: Basketball, DJ, local vendors & food trucks, prizes, and giveaways
- Bring: Family, friends, community groups, youth teams, and your voice
- Season info: Schedules and social links are on the Men’s Basketball page at .
Coach Jackson’s door is open, literally. He invites community partners, service groups, and local leaders to reach out about collaborations and game-day experiences for their organizations.
This is your team, Fort Pierce. River Madness is the starting whistle. Let’s make the gym sound like home.
