Tennessee football makes cut for elite 2023 Florida DB Ja’Keem Jackson

Josh Heupel’s past connections to the Orlando area after three years as head coach of the UCF Knights continue to pay off for Tennessee football. Despite his offensive reputation, he’s now got the Vols trending for an elite Florida defender for 2023 from the area.

Ja’Keem Jackson, a four-star defensive back across the board out of Osceola High School in Kissimmee, Fla., has Rocky Top in his top six. Standing between 6’1″ and 6’2″ while weighing in the range of 170 to 185 pounds, Jackson is actually listed as an athlete on Rivals, but he’s a cornerback everywhere else.

Joining Tennessee football on Jackson’s list are the Florida Gators, Alabama Crimson Tide, Auburn Tigers, Penn State Nittany Lions and Kentucky Wildcats. He announced the schools Wednesday afternoon on Twitter along with his commitment date, which will be July 28.

UT just took a hit at cornerback with the departure of Alontae Taylor and its experienced nickel in Theo Jackson. However, the Vols added lots of talent in the offseason, most notably two transfers, and they return four other players who could be in the rotation.

As a result, this appears to be a position where they are set for the future, but more help here is always a good thing. Also, everybody competing for openings at the position this year is unproven except for Warren Burrell, and he’ll be gone by 2024 at the latest.

Simply put, Jackson could be a big addition no matter what, so Heupel having the Vols on his radar is a big deal. Despite his offensive background, the reputations of Tim Banks and Willie Martinez should help out significantly here.

Currently, there are no favorites to land Jackson on the Rivals Future Cast, and there are no 247Sports Crystal Ball predictions. However, Tennessee football is the favorite by a slight majority on the Rivals fan future cast, and On3 has them as a plurality favorite, so they are in good shape a month out.