A strong and accurate arm and excellent running skills made Jarious Jackson a dual threat, record setting star for the Irish in the late 90s.
A native of Tupelo, Mississippi, Jackson was one of the most sought-after quarterback prospects in the nation when he committed to Lou Holtz and Notre Dame in 1996.
He played sparingly for his first two seasons in South Bend as Ron Powlus rewrote the Notre Dame record books.
In 1998 now under Bob Davie he got has chance as the starter and took full advantage. For the season he threw for 1740 yards and 13 TDs and rushed for 441 yards and 4 TDs as the Irish won big on the field.
That ’98 team was 8-1 when they took on LSU in mid-November in South Bend. Jackson was brilliant on the day throwing for 276 yards, 2 TDs and running for 80 yards as he brought the Irish from behind for a 39-36 victory. Unfortunately, he sprained his knee when taking an intentional safety to end the game and had to miss the season finale at USC, a 10-0 loss for the Irish.
In 1999 Jackson was accorded the rare honor of being named as the sole team Captain, and Jackson responded with a record setting senior season. His 2,753-yards passing total broke Joe Theisman’s single season record and with his 464 yards rushing, his total offense number of 3,217 yards also broke one of Theisman’s records.
Jackson was drafted in the 7th round by the Denver Broncos and spent four years as an NFL backup and one year in the World league. In 2005 he moved to the Canadian League. There he put together an eight-year career that included three Grey Cup championships.
Jarious Jackson, another Fighting Irish Preview, All-Time Irish Hero.