DL Kendall Jackson’s Official Visit Pushes Gators Into Driver's Seat
Buchholz (Gainesville, Fla.) defensive lineman Kendall Jackson made the short trip to the University of Florida on the first weekend of June to closely examine his hometown school.
It was the 13th trip to the Gators campus for Jackson dating back to March 1, 2022.
However, despite his consistent presence at UF throughout his recruitment, Jackson continued to learn new attributes about the program and what it had to provide him throughout the multi-day stay. He left with Billy Napier's sitting in the driver's seat for his eventual pledge.
"It's the top school. Definitely the top school," he shared with All Gators, freshly removed from the short trek. "Being able to hang out with the current UF players was one of the highlights. Just getting to see the team if you were to commit there, the teammates you'd be around and how they act.
His host, Cam'Ron Jackson, who recently transferred into the program from Memphis, was his primary glimpse into that aspect of the visit.
"Then, also, the GatorMade program and the love the coaching staff have for each other kind of brings your attention because not a lot of schools have it to where the offensive and defensive staffs get along well."
As a player, the Gators view Jackson as an edge prospect at the next level, where he can utilize his intriguing mix of size, length and versatility to create pressure on opposing quarterbacks and set the edge against the run. He expects to align with outside linebackers coach Mike Peterson's group if he commits to Florida.
"They say, because of my size and speed, not a lot people can move and do things I do at my size and speed," he shared about Florida's desire for him in the defensive trenches. "For me to be 255, like, between 255 to 260 at 6-foot-4 and still be able to move and play how I play, my versatility is what really brings my skill set to them. That's what the real big message was the whole weekend."
Added comfortability for his development arises from knowing he'd be working under Peterson in a newly reconstructed edge group that engulfed the strongside defensive ends this offseason.
Not only does Jackson feel Peterson has the coaching tools — paired with time at UF as a player and NFL experience — to aid him in accomplishing his goal of playing professionally, but the two's similarities in their life trajectory draw him near the Florida program.
"I mean, he has the experience to teach me great, great things because he's been there; he's been through it," he said. "From the same city as I am, so he knows what it's like to be a local kid if I were to commit. So, it means a lot if I were to commit there [for him] to give and show me the ropes."
Accordingly, they have formed a tight bond since Peterson's return to UF last offseason.
Jackson, as he works to pinpoint his home of the future over the next several weeks before his August commitment, has well-defined criteria for the program he inevitably aligns with. He'll test the water at the four schools that have begun to separate from the pack to float above the other contenders for his services.
"Really, some of my biggest questions are depth chart and playing time," he said. "I'm big on relationships, so that's one thing I'll look at too. Seeing if it's somewhere I feel like I can be academics wise and living wise, development as a businessman and an actual man, like are they teaching you great communication skills as far as like interviews and other places because other schools I've been to, they've had people who were helping them with communication skills and teaching them about everything.
"Like, once you get to the pros, how to handle your money, financials, and do they have the program to teach you about those type of things? How are the community service projects? Where do they take you? Do they give you good opportunities to grow if this is something you want to do with your life after football, 'cause football isn't forever?
"So, I just look at a lot of things and take them into consideration."
He's currently on campus at Arkansas for an official visit to Fayetteville June 9-11. He'll take trips to Kentucky (June 16-18) and Miami (June 23-25) in the succeeding weeks. Those teams are playing catch up to the hometown Gators, but Jackson deliberately leaves the door open for other schools to find the best fit for him as a player and person after high school.
However, even with the other schools firmly in the mix, Florida "checks all of the boxes" of the extensive criteria he outlined to appear in the driver's seat for his end-of-summer pledge after his official visit to Gainesville.
"The OV definitely helped Florida out 'cause even though I've been there a lot, the things I saw this weekend, I have never seen before," he said. "So, every time you're here, they're showing you something new. They treat me like I'm not a local kid. It showed me a lot."
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