Tag: Sam Jackson

Jaguars 2023 roster review: OL Samuel Jackson

Could UCF’s Samuel Jackson be a solution for the Jaguars’ left guard hole?

The brunt of the offseason is in the books and training camp is coming soon. Join us in the NFL’s dead zone with a player-by-player review of the Jaguars roster ahead of the 2023 season.

The Jacksonville Jaguars will have only four newcomers on the offensive line when they open training camp. The first two — veteran offensive tackle Josh Wells and first-round pick Anton Harrison — will draw a lot of eyeballs following the departure of Jawaan Taylor in free agency.

The third addition to the offensive line was Cooper Hodges, a seventh-round pick who is listed at tackle by the Jaguars.

That makes Samuel Jackson, a 6’5, 330-pound rookie from UCF, as the only interior offensive lineman who was added to the Jaguars’ roster this offseason.

Given the team’s consistent struggles at left guard during the 2022 season, Jackson will have just as much of a chance as any to prove he’s worth a roster spot.

Contract (2023): $750,000 base salary, $2,666 prorated signing bonus, $752,666 cap hit.

Acquired: Jaguars signed Jackson as an undrafted free agent on May 1, 2023.

PFF grades:

  • 68.2 (2022 – UCF)
  • 65.2 (2021 – UCF)
  • 57.0 (2020 – UCF)
  • 57.0 (2019 – UCF)
  • 61.0 (2018 – UCF)
  • 55.6 (2017 – UCF)

Quote: “I can play anywhere on the line. My film speaks for that. … My biggest thing would be versatility and then leadership on top of that.” – Jackson

Calvin Ridley (No. 0) Travis Etienne Jr. (No. 1) Rayshawn Jenkins (No. 2) C.J. Beathard (No. 3) Tank Bigsby (No. 4) Andre Cisco (No. 5)
Chris Claybrooks (No. 6) Zay Jones (No. 7) Logan Cooke (No. 9) Parker Washington (No. 11) James McCourt (No. 12) Christian Kirk (No. 13)
Kendric Pryor (No. 14) Tim Jones (No. 15) Trevor Lawrence (No. 16) Evan Engram (No. 17) Nathan Rourke (No. 18) Sammis Reyes (No. 19)
Daniel Thomas (No. 20) Latavious Brini (No. 21) JaMycal Hasty (No. 22) Foyesade Oluokun (No. 23) Snoop Conner (No. 24) D’Ernest Johnson (No. 25)
Antonio Johnson (No. 26) Divaad Wilson (No. 27) Tevaughn Campbell (No. 29) Montaric Brown (No. 30) Darious Williams (No. 31) Tyson Campbell (No. 32)
Devin Lloyd (No. 33) Gregory Junior (No. 34) Ayo Oyelola (No. 35) Christian Braswell (No. 36) Tre Herndon (No. 37) Qadree Ollison (No. 38)
Jamal Agnew (No. 39) Erick Hallett (No. 40) Josh Allen (No. 41) Andrew Wingard (No. 42) Kaleb Hayes (No. 43) Derek Parish (No. 43)
Travon Walker (No. 44) K’Lavon Chaisson (No. 45) Ross Matiscik (No. 46) De’Shaan Dixon (No. 47) Chad Muma (No. 48) Shaquille Quarterman (No. 50)
Ventrell Miller (No. 51) DaVon Hamilton (No. 52) Willie Taylor III (No. 53) DJ Coleman (No. 54) Dequan Jackson (No. 55) Yasir Abdullah (No. 56)
Caleb Johnson (No. 57) Raymond Vohasek (No. 59) Darryl Williams (No. 60) Samuel Jackson (No. 62) Coy Cronk (No. 64) Chandler Brewer (No. 67)
Brandon Scherff (No. 68) Tyler Shatley (No. 69) Cole Van Lanen (No. 70) Walker Little (No. 72) Blake Hance (No. 73) Cam Robinson (No. 74)
Cooper Hodges (No. 75) Anton Harrison (No. 76) Josh Wells (No. 77) Ben Bartch (No. 78) Luke Fortner (No. 79) Kevin Austin Jr. (No. 80)
Seth Williams (No. 81) Elijah Cooks (No. 84) Brenton Strange (No. 85) Gerrit Prince (No. 86) Jaray Jenkins (No. 87) Oliver Martin (No. 88)
Luke Farrell (No. 89) Henry Mondeaux (No. 90) Jordan Smith (No. 92) Tyler Lacy (No. 93) Folorunso Fatukasi (No. 94) Roy Robertson-Harris (No. 95)
Adam Gotsis (No. 96) Nick Thurman (No. 97) Michael Dogbe (No. 98) Jeremiah Ledbetter (No. 99) Brandon McManus Jacob Harris
Josh Pederson

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Pac-12 Preview: Is Justin Wilcox coaching for his job in 2023 at California?

Can the Golden Bears get to a bowl game for the first time since 2019? If they don’t, will Justin Wilcox be around in 2024?

As June starts to roll into July, and July eventually leads us to the start of fall camps at the beginning of August, the 2023 college football season will be here before we know it. What a season it projects to be in the Pac-12 Conference, as well. With a handful of College Football Playoff contenders, and a group of Heisman Trophy candidates leading their prospective teams, we could be set up for one of the best football seasons out west that we’ve seen in decades. To help get us prepared, we at Ducks Wire wanted to go through each team in the conference and give a comprehensive breakdown of each school, breaking down their 2023 outlook. Welcome to our Pac-12 Previews. New editions will be published every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday leading up to the start of fall camp. 

 

Check out our previously published previews: Arizona Wildcats — Arizona State Sun Devils — California Golden Bears

Time might be running out for Justin Wilcox in Berkeley.

After posting a losing record in his six years coaching the Golden Bears, it may be put up or shut up time for the former Oregon Ducks defensive back who reportedly turned down an opportunity to coach at his alma mater a couple of years ago. The talent on the field is not good enough to compete with the top teams in the Pac-12, and the recruiting is nowhere near good enough to build a winning roster down the road.

While there are games on California’s schedule this year that are certainly winnable, it feels like anything short of a bowl-eligible season — something Cal hasn’t had since 2019 — could result in a change at the top next offseason.

There are transfers who could end up being really solid pieces for the Golden Bears this year, but whether or not a few talented players can make a big enough difference to get Cal above six wins is yet to be determined.

Here is our full preview for the Golden Bears ahead of the 2023 season.