Louisville was the first Power-Five school to extend an offer to Ian Jackson on October 10th of 2019. Since then Florida State, Indiana, Iowa, Nebraska, and West Virginia have come calling as well as SEC schools Ole Miss, Tennesse, Texas A&M, and most recently Alabama. The Crimson Tide offered on February 1st when Jackson visited.
Surely with the Tide offering the local 6-foot-3, 210-pound, in-state athlete, who can play at all three levels of the defense, no one else has a shot, right? Such may not be the case. I reached out to Jackson to see if he still had any legitimate interest in Louisville and he answered in the affirmative.
"Yes sir, I am very interested in Louisville. They were the first Power 5 to offer me. My family and I had a great time when I visited for the Clemson football game," responded Jackson.
Based on our conversation, it appears Louisville has been able to stay competitive with the other schools joining the fray due to a concerted effort by the Cards' coaching staff to make Jackson feel like a priority.
"I communicate with Coach Dennison, Coach Hicks, and Coach Nochta. Also, Coach Braswell before he left for App State. I plan to visit either in the spring or in the summer," replied Jackson.
When asked if the Cards would be one of his top schools if he narrowed things down today he responded, "Yes sir, Louisville would be."
Jackson is a versatile athlete who has lined up at defensive end, outside linebacker, and even corner for Prattville. His versatility adds to his value and plans to exploit that facet of his athleticism and length by using him as a hybrid outside linebacker who can sometimes move down to the defensive end position.
So what are Jackson's plans for the next step in his recruitment?
"After baseball season my family and I plan to make a list of schools to visit," said Jackson. "I am currently at 20 offers but these are the schools that are recruiting me the hardest: Louisville, Alabama, Texas A&M, Tennessee, Iowa, Florida State, Nebraska, Tulane, and Coastal Carolina."
Dave's Deliberations: Louisville has engaged in a dog fight with Alabama, A&M, Tennessee, Iowa, Florida State, and Nebraska. The fact they were the first to identify him as a Power-Five player and maintain a relationship with him since that time makes them a legitimate threat. Whenever Alabama is involved with an in-state prospect they're going to be considered the favorite. Sometimes, however, an out of state school can outwork the Tide, especially if the fit is right and the staff connects with the prospect and his family. That being said, Lousiville isn't the only underdog in this one. Jimbo Fisher and Texas A&M finished sixth in the country last year and they already have three four-stars committed in 2021. Jeremy Pruit and Tennessee finished seventh. If Louisville wants to ascend the ranks of the ACC and the national college football pantheon, they have to beat the top recruiters in the game.
