JACKSON, Tenn. — Aug. 5, 2008 — As Paul Jackson and his teammates stepped onto the court for the Tennessee Senior Olympics basketball tournament, they hoped their team name 鈥� WMD (Weapons of Mass Destruction) 鈥� would intimidate their opponents.
He had another concern in mind as well.
鈥淲e just hoped it wouldn鈥檛 be weapons of mass self-destruction,鈥� said Jackson, a Christian studies professor at Union.
Far from self-destructing, Jackson and his team won the state championship and gold medals at Battleground Academy in Franklin, Tenn., July 23-24. With the win, the WMD team qualified to play in the national Senior Olympics 3-on-3 tournament next year on the campus of Stanford University in Palo Alto, Calif.
The Senior Olympics offers a variety of athletic competitions for people over age 50, such as track and field, softball, basketball, cycling, racquetball and many other events. 鈥淭here was a 94-year-old man out there doing some stuff,鈥� Jackson said about the state competition.
Jackson and his teammates -- Charles Corley, George Woods, Michael Price and Ronald Weddle 鈥�- defeated the reigning six-time champions to win the state tournament.
The opposition had more size, but 鈥渨e were just faster and shot better for those particular games,鈥� Jackson said. 鈥淭he Lord really blessed us with being able to play, and playing together.鈥�