PROGRAM HISTORY
From CEO Owen Ferguson:
When I was a college junior, I was asked to coach a group of boys from the Over the Mountain area that had a team called the Magic City Jayhawks. As many teams do, we had a blast that season, but for some reason, we were sticking out to other teams and to the public eye. While we had strong players, we weren’t stacked with the “best” players. But our guys played harder than any team out there, were very tight knit, and our kids weren’t afraid to compete against anyone. The culture and spirit rubbed off on others, and people wanted to be a part of it. Every weekend, we got compliments from other teams, parents, and referees. After that season, I knew the Jayhawks were special, and I wanted to grow the Jayhawk brand to reach more people.
2018 - We had three Jayhawks teams the next season and began using the phrase “The Brotherhood”. Our older players loved supporting our younger teams, and these younger athletes loved watching the older athletes compete at the highest level. It was evident how much fun they were all having.
2019 - I coached at Mountain Brook High School under former Coach Bucky McMillan. The Jayhawks took a break this year as high school rules kept me from coaching AAU.
2020 - This summer, many parents asked if we could create more teams. I had gotten out of coaching high school basketball, and I just couldn’t say no. We created 3 teams over a month with over 30 players, old and new.
2021 - This was our first season as a Non-Profit Organization. In our first year, we recruited and hand-selected 86 kids from 7th - 11th to join our organization. We had 9 total teams and played in over 60 tournaments in Birmingham, Nashville, Atlanta, and even Orlando. We competed in YBOA, Hoopseen, and Grassroots events. As an organization, we won over 20 1st place finishes and a large handful of 2nd place finishes. We had two teams win the YBOA State Championship. Those two teams went to compete in the YBOA National Championship tournament, where one group finished runner up, and one group won the National Championship! Off the court we were able to put on a basketball camp for the members at the Exceptional Foundation. We are very excited to continue that relationship going forward and put on more events with their organization.
2022- The Magic City Jayhawks had become a well-known brand - not because of certain tournaments or social media - but because of the quality people who were a part of this organization. We had 11 teams from 7th-11th grade. This year we had multiple teams that won the YBOA State Championship, as well as many other tournaments around the country. At the end of the season our 8th grade team got invited to represent Alabama in the USA games, where we knocked off multiple states across the country to make it to the championship game, where we lost in a close one.
2023- 2023 was our biggest year yet. We added 3rd-6th grade teams to our program which put us at 15 teams across all ages. I think everyone in our program enjoyed having our younger boys around the gym, wearing the Jayhawks gear, and cheering for the older boys. Our program is a true brotherhood consisting of kids from all ages and all communities in Birmingham.
My favorite thing I have heard from players and parents year in and year out, is that “this is the most fun they have had playing basketball in their lives”, and to me that is what it is all about. Youth sports are such a memorable experience for kids, and I want to create something they will remember. For that reason, we are looking forward to growing the impact of the Jayhawks over the coming years.
- Owen Ferguson, CEO