Niki Jackson (born August 25, 1995) is an American

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

player who plays as a

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

for

San Diego Loyal San Diego Loyal Soccer Club is an American professional Association football, soccer team based in San Diego, California. The team was founded by Warren Smith and Landon Donovan. San Diego Loyal made its debut in 2020 as an expansion team in the ...

in the

USL Championship The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, pl ...

. He grew up in

Collierville, Tennessee Collierville is a town in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and a suburb located in the Memphis metropolitan area. With a population of 51,324 in the 2020 census, Collierville is the third largest municipality in the county after Memphis ...

and

Scottsdale, Arizona , settlement_type = City , named_for = Winfield Scott , image_skyline = , image_seal = Seal of Scottsdale (Arizona).svg , image_blank_emblem = City of Scottsdale Script Logo.svg , nick ...

before attending

Cactus Shadows High School Cactus Shadows High School is a public high school located in Cave Creek, Arizona. It is the only high school in the Cave Creek Unified School District. In 1974 the first committee met in Cave Creek to form a high school. In the fall of 1982, t ...

and

Grand Canyon University Grand Canyon University (GCU) is a private for-profit Christian university in Phoenix, Arizona. Based on student enrollment, Grand Canyon University was the largest Christian university in the world in 2018, with 20,000 attending students on ...

Career

Grand Canyon University

Jackson played four years of

college soccer College soccer is played by teams composed of soccer players who are enrolled in colleges and universities. It is very prominent in United States, Japan, South Korea, Canada, and as well as in South Africa and the Philippines. The United Kingd ...

between 2014 and 2017. He was coached his first year by Petar Draksin at GCU and the following three seasons by

Schellas Hyndman Schellas Hyndman (born November 4, 1951) is a retired soccer coach. He was previously head coach of FC Dallas in Major League Soccer. Despite having a limited career as a professional athlete, Hyndman is one of the most successful college socc ...

. During his time with the Antelopes, Jackson scored 41 goals and tallied nine assists in 69 appearances. He was the program's second ever

MLS SuperDraft The MLS SuperDraft is an annual college draft for teams of Major League Soccer in the United States and Canada. It takes place in January and is used by teams to select players who have graduated from college or otherwise been signed by the le ...

pick after teammate Amir Šašivarević went one round earlier in the same draft.

Colorado Rapids

On January 21, 2018, Jackson was selected 73rd overall in the

2018 MLS SuperDraft The 2018 MLS SuperDraft was the nineteenth SuperDraft conducted by Major League Soccer. As customary, the SuperDraft was held in conjunction with the annual United Soccer Coaches convention. The 2018 UCS was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania be ...

Colorado Rapids The Colorado Rapids are an American professional soccer club based in the Denver metropolitan area. The Rapids compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. Founded in 1995, as part of the Anschutz Corporation, la ...

. He signed with the club on February 20, 2018. He made his professional debut on February 28, 2018 as a 66th-minute substitute during a

CONCACAF Champions League The CONCACAF Champions League, known officially as the Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League for sponsorship reasons, is an annual continental club football competition organized by CONCACAF. The tournament is contested by clubs from North Ameri ...

game against

Toronto FC Toronto Football Club (commonly known as Toronto FC or TFC) is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matches at BMO ...

. Jackson came on as a sub for his

MLS Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...

debut and scored his first career goal against

New England Revolution The New England Revolution is an American professional soccer club based in the Greater Boston area that competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), in the Eastern Conference of the league. It is one of the ten charter clubs of MLS, having compet ...

. On April 21, 2018, Jackson was loaned to

United Soccer League United Soccer League (USL), formerly known as United Soccer Leagues, is a Association football, soccer league in the United States and Canada. It organizes several men's and women's leagues, both professional and amateur. Men's leagues curren ...

side

Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC is a professional soccer team based in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Founded in 2014, the team is a member of the USL Championship, the second tier of the United States soccer league system, American soccer pyramid. T ...

. On April 12, 2019, Jackson was loaned to

USL The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, p ...

side

Charlotte Independence Charlotte Independence is an American soccer team based in Charlotte, North Carolina that plays in the USL League One, the third tier of the American soccer pyramid. The Independence currently play their home games at American Legion Memorial ...

. Following their 2020 season, Colorado opted to decline their contract option on Jackson.

San Diego Loyal

On February 11, 2021, Jackson signed with

side

. On August 6, 2021, Jackson moved on loan to

USL League One USL League One (USL1) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that had its inaugural season in 2019. The Division III league is operated by United Soccer League, the same group that operates the Division II USL Championshi ...

side South Georgia Tormenta for the remainder of the season.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, Niki Living people 1995 births African-American soccer players American men's soccer players Soccer players from Mississippi Sportspeople from Vicksburg, Mississippi Men's association football forwards Grand Canyon Antelopes men's soccer players Colorado Rapids draft picks Colorado Rapids players Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC players San Diego Loyal SC players Charlotte Independence players Major League Soccer players USL Championship players Tormenta FC players 21st-century African-American sportspeople USL League One players