Northern Arizona University and head coach Shane Burcar were able to land a commitment out of Wisconsin last week from Jayden Jackson. Jackson is a 6’3” senior point guard of Whitefish Bay High School and played with the ABC Young Lions program. 

When asked why he chose Northern Arizona, Jackson responded “The coaches, the academic programs, and the location. It was somewhere I could see myself.” He continued on about the location of the Flagstaff, Arizona school saying “I didn’t want to be confined to living in Wisconsin my whole life. I wanted to explore what life has to offer and learn how to be on my own.” 

Not only a standout on the hardwood, Jackson was also a heavily recruited football player. He had received several Division One football scholarships. However, over the summer he decided to peruse basketball at the college level. “I developed a greater love for basketball over the years. It was something I wanted to keep perusing at a higher level.”  

Once Jackson decided upon basketball at the next level, scholarship offers quickly came in from Northern Arizona, UMBC, and Wisconsin-Milwaukee. South Alabama had also offered him last year. 

Jackson decided to make his commitment now to Northern Arizona as he “felt the time was right.” He added in “the corona virus affected my chanced of viewing schools and meeting coach so it condensed the recruiting process.” 

Northern Arizona is a Division One program and a member of the Big Sky Conference. The program is coming off of a 16-14 record with a 10-10 mark in conference. Jackson marks the first commitment for the Lumberjacks 2021 recruitment class.