Hammond LB Jackson Ross (6-3 215) is one of the top overall athletes in SCISA, but he is focused on playing linebacker in college, and right now, USC, Vanderbilt, and Texas Tech are leading the way for him.
Ross will take an official visit to Vanderbilt on May 29th. He will visit USC on June 5th and Texas Tech on June 12th. It’s possible he could add another official visit or two before making a decision in late June or early July.
Some other offers are North Carolina, Duke, Wake Forest, Virginia Tech, Appalachian State, USF, and Louisville. Several coaches were in last week to see him, including USC Defensive Coordinator and Linebackers Coach Clayton White. White and his assistant, Trey Money, have been making a strong push for the Gamecock legacy, who is the son of former basketball player David Ross.
“I really love Coach White and Coach Money,” Ross said. “I think they’ve done one of the better jobs of showing me how I fit into the type of linebacker they are recruiting in terms of athleticism and the different types of plays that their guys are going to be able to make. They’ve done a good job of showing me how I fit into their model and scheme. They’ve even gone so far as to put different plays I’ve made side by side with plays their linebackers are consistently making. That’s just showing the types of plays I make now are why they are interested. They’ve shown real interest, and they want me in their program.”
Ross understands that the Gamecocks need athletic linebackers who can run and cover in space, and that describes him perfectly.
“It’s the SEC, so everybody is big, strong, and fast,” Ross said. “They want their linebackers to be able to make a lot of plays in space. They play in space a lot. Being able to run with faster running backs, being able to cover the tight end or take the back out of the backfield in coverage, you’ve got to be athletic to be able to do that. I think I pass all those tests in what they’re looking for athletically in a linebacker.”
With his dad a former basketball player under Eddie Fogler, and living just a few miles from campus, Ross knows picking the Gamecocks would be the easiest path to start his college career. But doing things the easy way is not what he’s all about.
“I’ve done a good job, my whole family has done a good job of putting being a Gamecock fan aside and looking at where the best place is for me,” Ross said. “My dad grew up a die-hard Auburn fan, and it would have been easy for him to go play basketball at Auburn. However, coming to play here was the right decision for him. So, I’ve been putting the fandom aside and just looking at where the best place to go play is. It’s not easy, but I think I’ve done a good job doing that.”
Last season, Ross was in on 102 tackles with 22 tackles for loss and eight sacks.