When last we last left J.C. Jackson, Florida head coach Jim McElwain talked of a “long row to hoe” for the talented but troubled defensive back to remain with the football program. Nearly a month later, it appears any chance of that has been plowed under.
According to Rivals.com‘s UF website ($ link), and not so surprisingly, Jackson has been told that he will not remain on scholarship while felony charges are pending. And, because of that, Jackson has decided to, ahem, transfer out of the Gator football program.
The impetus for Jackson’s (forced?) decision stems from the fact that the university has already decided that the player will reportedly not be allowed to return to the football team, per school rules. That UF decision comes even as the charges could very well be dropped as early as this week.
As for the predicament Jackson put himself in? Jackson was arrested in connection to an armed home invasion robbery and charged with three felonies. According to the police report from the incident, Jackson went to an acquaintance’s residence in mid-April under the pretense of smoking marijuana. Unbeknownst to the alleged victim, Jackson allegedly brought two armed acquaintances along with him, who, after Jackson “excused” himself to make a phone call, proceeded to pull their weapons and demand a large supply of drugs and cash.
Jackson spent three nights in the Alachua County jail, with the Gainesville Sun reporting at the time that he was eventually released on a $150,000 bond. The tipping point for the Gators, if it wasn’t expressly the felonies, could be the fact that this wasn’t the first Jackson connection to off-field violence.
In December of last year, Jackson and West Virginia wide receiver Jacky Marcellus were both grazed by bullets in a shooting that happened outside of an Immokalee, Fla., apartment building. A third individual, the brother of Marcellus, was shot in the face but survived.
A four-star member of the Gators’ 2014 recruiting class, Jackson was rated as the No. 21 corner in the country; the No. 37 player at any position in the state of Florida; and the No. 243 recruit overall by Rivals.com. He played in the 2014 opener, but missed the remainder of the season with a shoulder injury. Exiting the spring, Jackson was expected to take a starting job into summer camp.
And, now, Jackson will be another FBS program’s on-field solution. Or off-field problem. One of the two. Or both.