Earnest Jackson

Earnest Jackson, Jr. (born December 18, 1959) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

player who was a

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offen ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). He was named to the

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

twice. Born in

Needville, Texas Needville is a city in Fort Bend County, Texas, United States. It is within the metropolitan area. The population was 3,089 at the 2020 census. History August Schendel founded the town of Schendelville in 1891 that contained his house, a store a ...

, Jackson graduated from

Lamar Consolidated High School Lamar Consolidated High School is a grades 9–12 school located in Rosenberg, Texas, United States. The school, which serves the City of Richmond, parts of Rosenberg, and unincorporated areas of Fort Bend County, is a part of the Lamar Consolida ...

before going to

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

in 1979. In four seasons with the Aggies Jackson had over 2,000 yards from scrimmage and 5 touchdowns. He led the Southwest Conference in rushing yards per attempt in 1981 with 5.8 yards per carry. He was drafted in the eighth round of the

1983 NFL Draft The 1983 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 26–27, 1983, at the New York She ...

by the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...

. Jackson played 6 NFL seasons, 1983 and 1984 with the

where he was a Pro Bowler in 1984 rushing for 1,179 yards and 8 touchdowns. In 1985, he had another 1,000 yard season this time with the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...

. His last three NFL seasons were from 1986 to 1988 with the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...

. In 1986, he was once again a Pro Bowler running for 910 yards and 5 touchdowns. Earnest Jackson ended his career with 4,167 yards on 1059 carries along with 22 touchdowns. He also caught the ball for 695 yards on 87 receptions and 2 touchdowns. 1959 births Living people Players of American football from Houston American football running backs San Diego Chargers players Philadelphia Eagles players Pittsburgh Steelers players American Conference Pro Bowl players Texas A&M Aggies football players {{runningback-1950s-stub