Jackson Sirmon (born April 15, 2000) is an American professional
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
linebacker
Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...
for the
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...
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). He played
college football
College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...
for the
Washington Huskies
The Washington Huskies are the college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Washington, located in Seattle. The school competes at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) N ...
and
California Golden Bears
The California Golden Bears are the athletic teams that represent the University of California, Berkeley. Referred to in athletic competition as ''California'' or ''Cal'', the university fields 30 varsity athletic programs and various club te ...
.
Early life
Sirmon grew up in
Brentwood, Tennessee
Brentwood is a city in Williamson County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 45,373 as of the 2020 United States census.Loyola High School and later transferred to
Brentwood Academy
Brentwood Academy is a coeducational Christian independent college preparatory school located in Brentwood, Tennessee, for grades 6–12.
History
The charter of Brentwood Academy was signed on November 20, 1969, after ten acres of land on Gra ...
. In his high school career he tallied 59 tackles with 13 being for a loss, and ten sacks. Sirmon committed to play
college football
College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...
at the
University of Washington
The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...
.
College career
Washington
As a freshman in 2018, Sirmon totaled one tackle and a forced fumble. In the 2019 Las Vegas Bowl, Sirmon recovered a fumble as the Huskies beat
Boise State
Boise State University (BSU) is a public research university in Boise, Idaho, United States. Founded in 1932 by the Episcopal Church, it became an independent junior college in 1934 and has been awarding baccalaureate and master's degrees It ...
. Sirmon finished the 2019 season with 28 tackles and two going for a loss, and a fumble recovery. Sirmon had a career day in a win over
Utah
Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...
in 2020, where he racked up nine tackles and a fumble recovery. Sirmon finished the shortened 2020 season with 27 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, and a fumble recovery. In week nine of the 2021 season, Sirmon recorded his first career interception, picking a pass in the redzone by quarterback Tanner McKee, helping Washington beat
Stanford
Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth governor of and th ...
20–13. Sirmon finished his breakout 2021 season with 91 tackles with four being for a loss, a pass deflection, an interception, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery. Sirmon entered the transfer portal following the season.
California
Sirmon decided to transfer to the
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...
, to continue his college career with the
California Golden Bears
The California Golden Bears are the athletic teams that represent the University of California, Berkeley. Referred to in athletic competition as ''California'' or ''Cal'', the university fields 30 varsity athletic programs and various club te ...
. Sirmon started the 2022 season strong, as in week three he totaled 15 tackles with two going for a loss, and 1.5 sacks, but the Golden Bears fell to Notre Dame 24–17. In week seven, Sirmon picked off a pass by Owen McCown, but California lost 20–13 against
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 ...
. In week twelve, Sirmon recovered a fumble that he returned for a touchdown that would win the Golden Bears the game, as they would beat
Stanford
Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth governor of and th ...
27–20. Sirmon finished the 2022 season as his best, tallying 104 tackles with six going for a loss, 3.5 sacks, four pass deflections, an interception, a fumble recovery, a forced fumble, and a touchdown. For his performance, Sirmon was named a first-team all Pac-12 selection. After the conclusion of the 2022 season, Sirmon announced that he would return to California for his final season. Sirmon was named preseason first team all Pac-12, for the upcoming 2023 season. Sirmon was also named as a preseason All-American by Athlon Sports. Sirmon would also be named to multiple award watch lists, such as the
Bronko Nagurski Trophy
The Bronko Nagurski Trophy has been awarded annually since 1993 to the collegiate American football defensive player adjudged by the membership of the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) to be the best in the National Collegiate Athle ...
watch list, and the
Butkus Award
The Butkus Award, instituted in 1985 by the Downtown Athletic Club of Orlando, is given annually to the top linebackers at the high school, collegiate and professional levels of football. The award, named in honor of College Football Hall of Fame ...
watch list.
Professional career
Sirmon signed with the
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...
as an undrafted free agent on May 3, 2024. He was waived on August 27, and later re-signed to the practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract on January 6, 2025.
Personal life
Sirmon is the son of former NFL linebacker and current
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
defensive coordinator
A defensive coordinator (DC) is a coach responsible for a gridiron football team's defense. Generally, the defensive coordinator, offensive coordinator and special teams coordinator represent the second level of a team's coaching structure, wit ...
and linebackers coach,
Peter Sirmon
Peter Anton Sirmon (born February 18, 1977) is an American football coach and former professional linebacker who currently serves as the linebackers coach for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He was selected in the 2 ...
and the cousin of former
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...