How a Previous Connection Kept Gators TE Amir Jackson from Transferring from Florida

Evan McKissack was Amir Jackson’s fourth Division I college football offer. A zero-star recruit at the time, Jackson was somewhat unknown after recording 22 receptions for 428 yards in his junior season, the exact type of under-the-radar recruit that McKissack was looking for at Troy.

However, Jackson’s stock would soon skyrocket, with the Portal, Georgia, prospect ending the 2024 recruiting cycle ranked as the seventh-best tight end in the class and amongst the top 100 players in the country. Signing with the Florida Gators, Troy was left in the rear view mirror, yet for McKissack, the chance to coach Jackson was unknowingly up ahead.

McKissack's head coach at Troy was Jon Sumrall, who he eventually followed to Tulane and then to Florida this offseason.

"I felt like that was God, to be honest with you, because I love the kid," McKissack said of getting to coach Jackson. "That's one thing in recruiting, is there's nothing like building relationships with these kids, and he's a young man now, by gosh, and he's doing some really good things. But that was a wonderful experience."

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Evan McKissack → Tight Ends

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— Florida Gators Football (@GatorsFB) January 6, 2026

While McKissack had once failed in recruiting Jackson, he would get a second chance, joining the Gators staff six days after the sophomore tight end announced his intentions to enter the transfer portal. This time, another six days later, the coach would finally land his commitment.

Jackson announced his intentions to return to Florida on Dec. 27, less than two weeks after originally leaving the program.

“Just hanging out with him, we reflected back on that, and I hung out with his family right away when I got the job,” Mckissack said on the retention effort. “At the end of the day, you got to be 10 toes down, that was my biggest thing. And golly, I'm so pumped.”

Heading into spring and officially back with the program, Jackson is now expected to be at the top of McKissack's unit in 2026. Despite lacking much experience, playing just 151 snaps in his career so far, the uber-athletic receiving threat seems primed for a breakout year after large improvements to his game.

DJ Lagway connects with Amir Jackson for his first career touchdown!

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He is also the lone returning contributor at the position after Hayden Hansen and Tony Livingston transferred from the program. He is relishing the opportunity ahead of him, McKissack said.

In particular, Jackson's mental knowledge of the position is growing, evidenced by his habits in position meetings. Pair that with his physical attributes, Jackson could be a dangerous weapon in 2026.

“I mean that joker’s in here practicing formations, aligning, assignment, execution, and I think that's been a really big focal point for his growth,” McKissack said. “That way he can play fast, because he is fast. I mean, heck, he clocked about 20 miles an hour a couple of weeks ago, and everybody's like, ‘Golly this joker's got it’. And so it's in there. I'm excited, we got some other pieces around him that's also going to make him compete to be his best.”

Heading into his third year at the program, the high expectations remain for one of the highest rated tight end Gator signees in the past decade. Now re-connected with McKissack, watch for Jackson to finally take the next step and reach a potential that the tight ends coach had seen in him since he was just an unknown zero-star recruit in high school.