Tom Jackson (American football, born 1951) facts for kids
Jackson at the 2010 NFL draft
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| No. 56, 57 | |||||||
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| Position: | Linebacker | ||||||
| Personal information | |||||||
| Born: | April 4, 1951 Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. |
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| Height: | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | ||||||
| Weight: | 220 lb (100 kg) | ||||||
| Career information | |||||||
| High school: | John Adams (Cleveland) | ||||||
| College: | Louisville | ||||||
| NFL Draft: | 1973 / Round: 4 / Pick: 88 | ||||||
| Career history | |||||||
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| Career highlights and awards | |||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||
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| Player stats at PFR | |||||||
Thomas Louie Jackson, known as "TJ" or "Tommy", was born on April 4, 1951. He is a famous American sports commentator and a former professional football player. He played as a linebacker for the Denver Broncos in the National Football League (NFL) from 1973 to 1986.
Tom was a key part of Denver's strong "Orange Crush Defense". He helped the Broncos reach the AFC Championship games in 1977 and 1986. After he stopped playing, he had a very successful 29-year career as an NFL analyst for ESPN. In 2015, he received the Pete Rozelle Award for being excellent in sports broadcasting.
Contents
Playing Career Highlights
Early Life and Sports
Tom Jackson grew up in Cleveland, Ohio. He went to John Adams High School. There, he played football, baseball, and was also a wrestler. He loved the Cleveland Browns and often went to games with his dad. Tom has said that his wrestling coach helped him become mentally tough.
College Football Journey
Jackson really wanted to go to Ohio State for college. However, they weren't very interested in him because he was considered a bit small for football. Instead, he was recruited by University of Louisville coach Lee Corso. Tom played football for Louisville for three seasons, from 1970 to 1972.
During his time in college, he was named the Missouri Valley Conference player of the year twice. He led the Cardinals in tackles every year he played. His team had a great record of 23 wins, 7 losses, and 2 ties. In 1999, Louisville honored his jersey number 50.
Professional Career with the Broncos (1973–1986)
The Denver Broncos picked Tom Jackson in the fourth round of the 1973 NFL draft. He played for 14 years in Denver, Colorado. During his career, he was chosen for the Pro Bowl three times. He was also named an All-Pro player four times. His teammates voted him Denver's Most Inspirational Player six times.
Tom helped lead the Broncos to two major championship games: Super Bowl XII and Super Bowl XXI. He was one of only four players to play in both of these Super Bowls, which were nine years apart. When he retired, he had 20 career Interceptions. He also had 3 Touchdowns and 8 fumble recoveries. He recorded 13 sacks during his time with the Broncos. Tom Jackson is third on the Broncos' all-time list for games played, with 191 games. He was tied for the most interceptions by a linebacker in the team's history.
In 1992, Tom Jackson became the 14th person to be honored in the Broncos' Ring of Fame. This is a special award for legendary players.
Broadcasting Career (1987–2016; 2019-2020)
After his playing career, Tom Jackson joined ESPN in 1987. He worked with Chris Berman on popular NFL shows like NFL Countdown and NFL Primetime. Sunday NFL Countdown is a weekly Sunday morning show before games. It has won seven Sports Emmy awards for being an outstanding studio show. On Monday Night Countdown, Tom hosted a segment called "Jacked Up!" This segment showed some of the biggest hits from the previous day's games.
Tom was known for speaking his mind on social issues. He also shared his deep knowledge of football. Tom Jackson retired from ESPN after the 2016 Pro Football Hall of Fame ceremony. However, he reunited with Chris Berman for special playoff shows in 2019. They also started a new digital version of NFL Primetime on ESPN+ in September 2019. Tom decided not to host Primetime in 2020 due to concerns about the coronavirus pandemic.
Awards and Recognition
In July 2015, Tom Jackson received the Pete Rozelle Radio-Television Award. This is a very important award from the Pro Football Hall of Fame. It honors people who have done great work in sports broadcasting.
Personal Life
Tom Jackson lives in Cincinnati, Ohio with his wife, Jennifer. They met in Hawaii at the 1990 Pro Bowl. They have two daughters named Taylor and Morgan.
