Alvin Ray Jackson (born September 27, 1980) is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wit ...

arena football Indoor American football, or arena football, is a variation of gridiron football played at ice hockey-sized indoor arenas. While varying in details from league to league, the rules of indoor football are designed to allow for play in a smaller ar ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, pl ...

who is currently a free agent.

Early life

Born the son of Alvin and Sherry Jackson, Alvin prepped at

North Panola High School The North Panola School District is a public school district A school district is a special-purpose district that operates local public primary and secondary schools in various nations. North America United States In the U.S, most K–1 ...

Sardis, Mississippi Sardis is a town in Panola County, Mississippi. As of the 2010 census, the town population was 1,703. Sardis is one of two county seats for Panola County; the other is Batesville, on the south side of the Tallahatchie River. Geography Accordi ...

, where he was a three-sport athlete, lettering in football,

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

, and

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...

. Named All-District twice in football, where he was a

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such offensive running plays as sweeps and reverses. They create turnove ...

and

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

. Was a four-year standout in basketball, and was named All-District twice in the 200 meter dash. As a senior, finished fourth in the state in the 200m event. He was on his way to the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and largest of the publi ...

, when his academics failed to allow him acceptance.

College career

Alvin attended,

Northwest Mississippi Community College Northwest Mississippi Community College is a public community college in Senatobia, Mississippi. It was founded in 1928. As of August 2008, Northwest's enrollment exceeds 7,100 students. There are approximately 3,000 students on the Senatobia ca ...

where he was a wide receiver/punt returner. Had over 45 receptions for 1,100 yards and 12 touchdowns in his lone season with the Rangers. Alvin then transferred to

Jacksonville State University Jacksonville State University (JSU) is a public university in Jacksonville, Alabama. Founded in 1883, Jacksonville State offers programs of study in six academic schools leading to bachelor's, master's, education specialist, and doctorate degrees ...

, where he saw limited playing time. He would ultimately end up at

Albany State University Albany State University is a public historically black university in Albany, Georgia. In 2017, Darton State College and Albany State University consolidated to become one university under the University System of Georgia (USG). Albany State U ...

, where he would have over 75 receptions, 1,300 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns while also returning punts. Named All-

Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference The Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. Formed in 1913, it consists mostly of historically black c ...

Second Team (twice). His best season came as a junior with 37 receptions for 712 yards and seven touchdowns to go along with 30 punt returns for 404 yards and a touchdown. He was also known for 1-for-1 passing as a junior with a 28-yard touchdown pass. Finished his junior season ranked No. 17 in the nation in punt returns with a 13.5 yards/return.

Professional career

South Georgia Wildcats

Signed and played with the

South Georgia Wildcats The South Georgia Wildcats were a professional arena football team based in Albany, Georgia. They were member of the South Division of the American Conference of Arenafootball2 (AF2). The Wildcats joined the AF2 in 2002 as an expansion team, ...

(

af2 The AF2 (often styled as af2, and short for arenafootball2) was the Arena Football League's developmental league; it was founded in 1999 and played its first season in 2000. Like its parent AFL, the AF2 played using the same arena football ru ...

) in 2006 and 2008.

Albany Firebirds

Played for the

Albany Firebirds The Indiana Firebirds were a team in the Arena Football League. The team was based in Indianapolis, Indiana. Home games were played at the Conseco Fieldhouse, also the home of the Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association and Indiana ...

(

) in 2009. Was an All-AF2 selection at linebacker in 2009.

Arkansas Diamonds

Jackson tried out for the

Arkansas Diamonds The Arkansas Diamonds were a soccer club based in Little Rock, Arkansas that competed in the SISL and USISL. The team was first owned by Samir Haj, a youth club coach based in Fayetteville, Arkansas. The franchise struggled for funding as it fir ...

of the

Indoor Football League The Indoor Football League (IFL) is a professional indoor American football league created in 2008 out of the merger between the Intense Football League and United Indoor Football. It has one of the largest number of currently active teams am ...

in 2010, but was later released when he was contacted by the VooDoo.

New Orleans VooDoo

Jackson signed with the

New Orleans VooDoo Louisiana Voodoo (french: Vaudou louisianais, es, Vudú de Luisiana), also known as New Orleans Voodoo, is an African diasporic religion which originated in Louisiana, now in the southern United States. It arose through a process of syncretism ...

on October 13, 2010. During the 2011 season, he led the team in tackles with 89. In 2012, he earned First-Team All-Arena recognition after setting a single-season franchise record and tied for the AFL-high with 14 interceptions. He also became the VooDoo's all-time leader in tackles with 164 for his career.

Pittsburgh Power

On November 27, 2012, Jackson signed a 3-year contract with the

Pittsburgh Power The Pittsburgh Power were a professional arena football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The team belonged to the East Division of the American Conference (AC) in the Arena Football League (AFL). Founded in 2011, the Power ...

. The move reunited him with his former defensive coordinator, Power head coach

Derek Stingley Derek Stingley Jr. (born June 20, 2001) is an American football cornerback for the Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at LSU and was selected third overall by the Texans in the 2022 NFL Draft. Ear ...

. Jackson was reassigned on September 12, 2013.

Return to the VooDoo

The VooDoo claimed Jackson off reassignment on September 14, 2013. Jackson was placed on reassignment on June 30, 2014.

Jacksonville Sharks

On March 25, 2015, Jackson was assigned to the

Jacksonville Sharks The Jacksonville Sharks are a professional Indoor American football, indoor football team based in Jacksonville, Florida, playing their home games at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena. Beginning in 2017, the Sharks began play as charter members o ...

Cleveland Gladiators

On October 14, 2016, Jackson was selected by the

Cleveland Gladiators The Cleveland Gladiators were an arena football team based in Cleveland, Ohio, United States, and members of the Arena Football League (AFL). The Gladiators played their home games at Quicken Loans Arena, which they shared with the Cleveland Cav ...

during the dispersal draft. On March 25, 2017, Jackson was placed on recallable reassignment.

Tampa Bay Storm

On March 28, 2017, Jackson was assigned to the

Tampa Bay Storm The Tampa Bay Storm were a professional arena football team based in Tampa, Florida, US. It played in the Arena Football League (AFL). Originally the team was located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and operated as the Pittsburgh Gladiators. The f ...

. He earned First Team All-Arena honors in 2017. The Storm folded in December 2017.

Albany Empire

On March 19, 2018, Jackson was assigned to the Albany Empire. On March 29, 2018, he was placed on recallable reassignment.

Washington Valor

On May 17, 2018, he was assigned to the

Washington Valor The Washington Valor were a professional arena football team based in Washington, D.C. that played in the Arena Football League (AFL) from 2017 to 2019. The team's home arena was the Capital One Arena. The Valor were owned by Monumental Sports an ...

. On March 12, 2019, Jackson was assigned to the Valor again.

Coaching

During the 2013 season, he coached

Fort Valley State University } Fort Valley State University (FVSU, formerly Fort Valley State College and Fort Valley Normal and Industrial School) is a public land-grant historically black university in Fort Valley, Georgia. It is part of the University System of Georgia ...

. He was responsible for coaching the wide receivers and kickoff return units. That season the Wildcat football team finished with a 4–6 record.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, Alvin Ray 1980 births Living people American football linebackers Albany State Golden Rams football players South Georgia Wildcats players Albany Firebirds (af2) players Arkansas Diamonds (indoor football) players New Orleans VooDoo players Pittsburgh Power players Cleveland Gladiators players Jacksonville Sharks players Tampa Bay Storm players Albany Empire (AFL) players Washington Valor players Northwest Mississippi Rangers football players Players of American football from Mississippi People from Como, Mississippi Fort Valley State Wildcats football coaches