John Jackson will be on the field, and in the TV booth, as Gardena Serra faces Bishop Amat

It’s the game of the year for the Jackson family.

John Jackson, a senior receiver at Gardena Serra High, will be playing against Bishop Amat on Friday night at Serra in a game that will be televised by Fox Sports West. The color analyst for the broadcast will be Jackson’s father, John II, who was a standout receiver at Bishop Amat and USC.

“It’s a special week just because of my alma mater and, of course, my son,” John II said. “It’s a different week, but we’re maintaining.”

J.J., as his son is known, usually does very well against Bishop Amat. He had a touchdown last season against the Lancers, and during the baseball season he always seems to hit well.

But the pressure is on his father, who has been calling high school games for Fox for 21 years and has been a big supporter of Bishop Amat. He works every Friday night for Fox, so he hasn’t been able to watch his son play in person this season until now.

“I’m grateful to Fox and the CIF Southern Section for choosing this game,” he said.

Jackson said he never forgets how important it is for the players to have their team appear on TV.

“I have to approach it as a job and also realize it’s a special night, not just for my kid but all the kids,” he said. “The best thing about my job is for 95% of kids, this is going to be their only chance to be on TV. I try to keep that in perspective when I’m doing the game.”

Jackson has called a game before with his son playing. As a sophomore, J.J. was a reserve for Santa Ana Mater Dei in a game against Bishop Amat. He also scored a touchdown for Serra in a game last season against Santa Margarita.

“It was a proud dad moment,” John II said.

The son certainly gets to hear plenty from Dad.

“Unfortunately, the thing about being my son is we review the film on Sunday,” he said.

The play-by-play man, Sam Farber, had better be ready to settle down Dad on Friday night.

eric.sondheimer@latimes.com

Twitter: @latsondheimer