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Darrell Jackson – Sophomore DL – Miami Transfer Commit
The Basics
Darrell Jackson is a highly sought-after transfer from the University of Maryland. In his freshman season at Maryland Jackson put up 22 total tackles over 13 games. He started one game at the end of the season for the Terps, where he logged 6 tackles. After deciding to go portaling, the Havana, Florida native was met with offers from many potential suitors.
Standing a 6’5″ and 300 pounds, it’s easy to see why so many schools would want him on their defensive lines. Coming out of high school, Jackson was the 90th ranked DL nationally, and the 95th overall player in the state of Florida. The 247Sports composite listed him as the 715th overall player nationally.
While many schools were in the mix for Jackson, it is thought that the decision ultimately came down to the Florida Gators and the Miami Hurricanes, and after announcing his decision recently, it looks like he’ll be suiting up for the Canes next season.
Roster Outlook for 22-23
Currently the depth along the Canes Interior D-Line includes Akheem Mesidor Transfer (Jr.), Leonard Taylor (So.), Jared Harrison-Hunte (Rs So.), Jacob Lichtenstein Transfer (Rs Sr.), Jordan Miller (Rs Jr.), Antonio Moultrie Transfer (Rs Sr.), and Jonathan Ford (Sr.)
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The Fit and Opportunities for Playing Time
Going through Jackson’s game film, the thing that stands out most is how he kills all forward momentum upon contact. Whether it’s a full-body blow, or just an arms tackle, the moment Jackson makes contact with the ball carrier they are done gaining significant yardage. In his highlights, one thing that he is effective at is reading the offense and attacking the correct gaps along the line to stop opponents from running the ball effectively on him. Now, this is high school football, so I doubt that he will have as easy of a time breaking away from as well as moving opposing offensive linemen at the college level. In the limited action he saw at Maryland in year one he did display the acumen for reading opposing offenses, but he will have to continue to add strength to effectively continue to compete against linemen in the ACC.
Starting out at Miami you can for sure expect Jackson to play in the two-deep. Depending on how quickly he learns the new defense, and how he compares to others on the roster, he could become an outright starter at some point over the next season or so. He is only going into his sophomore season, so Miami and coach Mario Cristobal will have time to develop him into a high-level contributor by the time he becomes an upperclassman.
For now, expect him to either start or receive big minutes. How he plays will almost certainly dictate what role fills during the season as he settles into his new home down in Coral Gables.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
