Tennessee Offers Dynamic QB Tayven Jackson

Tayven Jackson is quickly becoming one of the top quarterbacks in the 2022 recruits in the country. Since December, Jackson has picked up 18 offers, including Florida, Oregon, Michigan, Georgia Tech, and Oklahoma State.

Yesterday, the talented passer added an offer from Tennessee and Josh Heupel's new staff.

Jackson's recruitment exploded after leading nationally ranked Center Grove (Ind.) to a 14-0 record and 6A state championship.

SI All-American's Director of Recruiting, John Garcia Jr. believes Jackson could be one of America's hottest recruits right now.

"If the Midwest red-hot talent award doesn't go to (Drew) Allar, it's a shoo-in win for Tayven Jackson. The big Indiana native with the live arm added offers from Florida and Tennessee over the weekend. Also, a basketball player at 6-foot-5, the Greenwood (Ind.) star, was also offered by South Carolina in February. Texas A&M, Oregon, Michigan and others offered in January."

Garcia Jr. also shared a brief with VR2 on SI about what makes Jackson's game so special. 

"Jackson is a big, athletic and ultimately intriguing quarterback prospect from the Midwest. His stature, at 6’5’’ is the first thing that catches your attention, but it doesn’t hold it, given his athletic traits as both a passer and a runner. A basketball background allows him to display a bounce in the pocket with legitimate comfort in tucking and running, but the strength pales in comparison to Jackson’s arm itself," Garcia Jr. said.

"The ball simply jumps off of the junior’s hand when he sets his feet, and even when he may not. This creates three-level discipline to combat the live arm, something that keeps defenses honest and vulnerable to an offensive coordinator. The trigger pairs with the arm strength well, too, coming together for potentially lethal throwing ability inside the pocket. As he fills out that frame and gets more seasoned, the comfort will be mirrored outside the pocket as a passer, to which Jackson’s game will start to hit an elite level."

His stats are not eye-popping as he did not play complete contests most nights due to significant leads, but his highlight tape is thoroughly impressive.

Last season, he threw for 1,756 yards and 17 touchdowns to just five interceptions. He added another six scores on the ground. 

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