Charlie Jackson (born November 4, 1976) is an

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

coach. He is the assistant head coach and defensive backs coach at the

United States Air Force Academy The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) is a United States service academies, United States service academy in Air Force Academy, Colorado, Air Force Academy Colorado, immediately north of Colorado Springs, Colorado, Colorado Springs. I ...

. Jackson served as the head football coach at

Kentucky State University Kentucky State University (KSU, and KYSU) is a public historically black land-grant university in Frankfort, Kentucky. Founded in 1886 as the State Normal School for Colored Persons, and becoming a land-grant college in 1890, KSU is the second ...

from 2019 to 2021. Jackson was an assistant coach for the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL) from 2017 to 2018. He served on the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

National Headquarters Enforcement Staff before joining the Falcons. Jackson's background includes multiple defensive coaching roles with the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

and

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is headquartered in E ...

and coaching fellowships with the Falcons and

St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis, Missouri, from 1995 through the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, California, where the team had played ...

. He also served as a college scout for the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

. His collegiate experience includes

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

Utah State Utah State University (USU or Utah State) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Logan, Utah, United States. Founded in 1888 under the Morrill Land-Grant Acts as Utah's federal land-grant institution, Utah State serv ...

Buffalo Buffalo most commonly refers to: * True buffalo or Bubalina, a subtribe of wild cattle, including most "Old World" buffalo, such as water buffalo * Bison, a genus of wild cattle, including the American buffalo * Buffalo, New York, a city in the n ...

, and

Air Force An air force in the broadest sense is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army aviati ...

Early life

Born in

Vienna, Georgia The city of Vienna () is the county seat of Dooly County, Georgia, United States. The population was 2,928 in 2020. Vienna is situated on the Flint River. It was established as Berrien in 1826. In 1833, its name was changed to Drayton. In 1841 ...

, Jackson is a 1995 academic honors graduate of Macon County High School in

Montezuma, Georgia Montezuma is a city in Macon County, Georgia ( ZIP code 31063). The population was 3,047 at the 2020 census, down from 3,460 in 2010. It is home to the armory of Bravo Company, 648th Engineers of the Georgia Army National Guard. History Montez ...

. As a football player at Macon County, he was named to the Georgia Academic All-State football team and many on the field accolades, including First Team All-State recognition and Georgia Class-A Football Defensive Player of the Year honors. He was named First Team All-Area by the

Americus Times-Recorder The ''Americus Times-Recorder'' is a daily newspaper published in Americus, Georgia. It is operated by South Georgia Media Group, a division of Community Newspaper Holdings Inc. History In 1879, the ''Americus Recorder'' began as a tri-weekly pu ...

, First Team All-Middle Georgia by the Macon Telegraph & News, and First Team All-State by the

Atlanta Journal-Constitution ''The Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' (''AJC'') is an American daily newspaper based in metropolitan area of Atlanta, Georgia. It is the flagship publication of Cox Enterprises. The ''Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the result of the merger ...

and the Georgia Sports Writers Association.

College

Jackson accepted an appointment to the

, and he participated in football and indoor track and field as a student-athlete. One of his many football highlights was his sophomore season performance against the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (USNA, Navy, or Annapolis) is a United States Service academies, federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as United States Secre ...

in 1997. In front of the largest crowd in Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium history, undefeated and #16 ranked Air Force traveled to Annapolis and defeated Navy 10–7. Jackson was named player of the game and subsequently conference player of the week. Following his senior football season, Jackson was selected by his teammates as a permanent team captain and recipient of Air Force football's highest honor, the Brian Bullard Award, as the player who displays unselfishness, pride in his role, total team commitment, and 110 percent effort. Jackson helped Air Force become a consistent member of the Top 25 national rankings, including a Top 10 final ranking and conference championship in 1998. Coach Charlie Jackson and President Bill Clinton

Coach Charlie Jackson and President Bill Clinton

Coach Charlie Jackson and President Bill Clinton Handshake

Jackson earned a bachelor's degree in management from the

. He has a master's degree in management and sports studies from

California State University, Long Beach California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), also known in athletics as Long Beach State University (LBSU), is a public teaching-focused institution in Long Beach, California, United States. The 322-acre campus is the second largest in the ...

Military service

Jackson was a Commissioned

Officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

and ascended to the rank of

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

while being stationed more than four years at

Tyndall Air Force Base Tyndall Air Force Base is a United States Air Force Base located east of Panama City, Florida. The base was named in honor of World War I pilot 1st Lt. Frank Benjamin Tyndall. The base operating unit and host wing is the 325th Fighter Wing (3 ...

, Florida and

Los Angeles Air Force Base Los Angeles Air Force Base (LAAFB) is a United States Space Force base located in El Segundo, California. Los Angeles Air Force Base houses and supports the headquarters of the Space Systems Command field command of the United States Space Fo ...

, California. His duties included serving as the U.S. Government point man in negotiations with three foreign government agencies in support of international treaty agreements

Coaching career

On February 17, 2017, Jackson was hired as an assistant coach with the

of the

(NFL). On February 1, 2019, Jackson was named head football coach at

. He is the winningest (percentage) head football coach at Kentucky State since 1945 (WWII) minimum 20 games. Jackson arrived at Kentucky State with the football program in the midst of a downward spiral that culminated in a 0–10 season in 2018. He took over a program on a 12-game losing streak and a record of 1–16 in the previous 17 games. In his first year leading the program in 2019, the team win total improved by seven games, the highest total win improvement in the country. His team posted victories over multiple Division 1 opponents for the first time in school history, and his team's 70 percent winning percentage (7–3) was the program's best in 41 years. After not competing in 2020 due to COVID-19, the next season produced more winning and the team's 14 win improvement over two seasons ranked #1. Jackson's team set many university records including points in an away game (76), points in a home game (63), total yards in a game (746), rush yards in a game (662), Division 1 victories, and most players with a 3.0 GPA or higher. Jackson is known for his associations with notable turnarounds throughout his coaching career. He helped Air Force to the best defense in school history in 2022. The Air Force defense ranked number one nationally in total defense, number one nationally in least first downs allowed, second nationally in passing defense, third in scoring defense, third in 3rd down conversion defense, and number five in rushing defense. Air Force defensive back, Trey Taylor, was awarded the 2023 Jim Thorpe Award for Best Defensive Back in College Football. With the Atlanta Falcons, the defensive unit ranked NFL Top 10 in scoring defense (eighth) and total defense (ninth) for the first time in 20 years. The Atlanta defensive unit finished fifth in red zone defense and ninth in rushing defense. Atlanta defensive back,

Keanu Neal Keanu Neal (born July 26, 1995) is an American former professional football player who was a safety for eight seasons in the National Football League (NFL), primarily with the Atlanta Falcons. He played college football for the Florida Gators ...

, was selected to his first Pro Bowl, and defensive back, Damontae Kazee, tied for the NFL lead with 7 interceptions. With the Green Bay Packers, the defense ranked seventh in the NFL in total defense and ranked first in passing defense - the organization's best in 27 years. During his time as a college scout with the Seattle Seahawks, the organization drafted future NFL All-Pro players Richard Sherman,

Bobby Wagner Bobby Joseph Wagner (born June 27, 1990) is an American professional football linebacker for the Washington Commanders of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Utah State Aggies and was selected by the Seattle Sea ...

, and

Russell Wilson Russell Carrington Wilson (born November 29, 1988) is an American professional American football, football quarterback for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He has primarily played for the Seattle Seahawks. With the Sea ...

. Less than one month into his first season at Kentucky State, Jackson had multiple historic victories including the 36th-annual Circle City Classic.

Professional organizations

Jackson is a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA). His professional associations include the

American Football Coaches Association The American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) is an association of over 11,000 American football coaches and staff on all levels. According to its constitution, some of the main goals of the American Football Coaches Association are to "mainta ...

(AFCA),

NFL Coaches Association The National Football League Coaches Association (NFLCA) is a group of coaches in the National Football League (NFL). During the 2011 NFL Lockout, the NFLCA filed a brief in favor of the players. Successful coaches often become as well or even ...

(NFLCA),

National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics The National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) is a professional non-profit organization for college and university athletic directors in the United States. NACDA boasts a membership of more than 6,100 individuals and more tha ...

(NACDA), National Association of Athletics Compliance (NAAC), Minority Coaches Association of Georgia (MCAofGA), and the National Association of Collegiate Women Athletics Administrators (NACWAA).

Head coaching record

References

External links

Kentucky State profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, Charlie 1976 births Living people American football safeties Air Force Falcons football coaches Air Force Falcons football players Atlanta Falcons coaches Buffalo Bulls football coaches Denver Broncos coaches Green Bay Packers coaches Kentucky State Thorobreds football coaches Seattle Seahawks scouts Utah State Aggies football coaches California State University, Long Beach alumni People from Montezuma, Georgia People from Vienna, Georgia Coaches of American football from Georgia (U.S. state) Players of American football from Dooly County, Georgia African-American coaches of American football 20th-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century American sportsmen 21st-century African-American sportsmen Players of American football from Macon County, Georgia