MOULTRIE – Jerry Croft won 449 games, including 31 in the postseason, and led the Colquitt County baseball program to the only two state championships in Packer baseball history during his 30 years as head coach.

Both of those state titles – in 1997 and 2003 – were won at Ike Aultman Field at the former Colquitt County High School.

Croft retired after the 2006 season and never got to coach from the dugout of the current baseball field at Packer Park – also named Ike Aultman Field – that opened in 2007.

But Croft will have a legacy at the Packer Park baseball diamond.

At a ceremony before Colquitt County High’s Tuesday season-opener against Jeff Davis, the home of the Packers will be officially renamed Ike Aultman Field at Jerry Croft Stadium.

Ceremonies begin at 5:35 p.m. with the game starting at 6 p.m. Croft will throw out the first pitch.

A sign over the updated scoreboard at the field reflects the name change.

The Packers home field had long ago been named in honor of Ike Aultman, the longtime school principal who played football at Moultrie High in the 1930s and later coached the Packers baseball team.

Croft’s signature No. 44 jersey has been unofficially retired and he has received other honors since leaving the dugout.

In 2006, he was named to the Colquitt County Sports Hall of Fame. His 1997 state championship baseball team, of which his son Jared was a member, joined the Hall of Fame in 2012.

Also in 2012, he was inducted into Georgia Dugout Club’s Hall of Fame joining Rob Williams, his former assistant, who won more than 500 games as the coach at Lee County High School.

On Jan. 9, the Colquitt County Board of Education voted to name the baseball stadium in his honor.

Jerry Croft was raised in Colquitt County, played three years of varsity baseball at Moultrie High under Ace Little and was team captain as a senior.

He also started three years for the basketball team under Ed “Preacher” Reeves and was the captain and most valuable player in 1967.

Croft went on to play baseball and basketball for two seasons at Norman College for Lowell Mulkey before going to Georgia Southwestern.

He was the boys basketball coach at Doerun High from 1972-1978, and in his final two years coaching the Deers, he also was the Packers baseball coach.

When he retired after the 2006 season, he had posted a record of 449-268-2, had six 20-win seasons and captured the only two state baseball championships in Packer history. His postseason record was 31-14 and his 1996 and 1998 teams reached the state semifinals.

He has often given credit to his assistant coaches – especially Williams, Keith Croft and Tony Kirkland – for his success.

Williams was his first assistant coach and worked with Croft for six seasons. Kirkland was the hitting coach and Keith Croft the pitching coach on the two state championship teams.

A number of his former players returned to Colquitt County to work for their former coach, including Keith Croft, Will Stuckey and Greg Tillery. Jake Mobley also returned to his hometown to coach baseball after Croft retired.

One of his former players, Dennis Powell, went on to the Major Leagues and pitched in 207 games for three teams.

Chris McAlpin has been a longtime scout for the Los Angeles Angels and Ty Megahee has been a college assistant coach for a number of years and is currently at Western Kentucky University.

Muzzy Jackson had a long career in the front offices of two major league teams.

Jackson, Powell, Christopher McCranie, Tony DeRosso, Reggie Stancil and Hayden Gliemmo, all Packers who played for Croft, are also in the Colquitt County Sports Hall of Fame.

Terry “Chick” Croft, Jerry’s younger brother, also is member of the Hall of Fame.

Croft also was an assistant varsity football coach under Bob Griffith and Bill McCall and was the defensive coordinator of the Colquitt County eighth-grade football team for 13 years under Roy Saturday.

After retiring, Croft continued to work in education and has long been the public address announcer at Tom White Field at Mack Tharpe Stadium.