In honor of Black History Month, the staff writers at Touchdown Alabama Magazine will be honoring the excellence regarding African American football players from the University of Alabama.
We will be putting together a series of articles — one per day — documenting those players who paved the way for others to have success wearing the crimson and white.
The second name we will highlight is Wilbur Jackson.
Before he would be joined by John Mitchell at the University of Alabama in 1971, Jackson was a star athlete at D.A. Smith High School and Carroll High School in Ozark, Ala.
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D.A. Smith, an all-black school, saw Jackson’s talent on the basketball court and in baseball from eighth grade until the school closed.
In moving to Carroll, it was an adjustment but Jackson had his friends with him.
During his two years with the Eagles (1969-70), he made the Class 4A All-State Team. He mostly played running back in football and in 1969, Jackson was selected Most Valuable Player and Most Valuable Offensive Back. He totaled 17 touchdowns in his senior year at Carroll and had 818 passing yards. In becoming one of the first two African Americans to break the color barrier, Jackson signed with the Crimson Tide as a split end. He caught four passes for 78 yards in three seasons (1971-73), but he flourished under Coach Paul “Bear” Bryant as a halfback.
Jackson would record 17 career rushing touchdowns, including eight scores each in 1972 and 1973.
Tide fans witnessed Jackson at his finest in his junior year, as he averaged an incredible 7.9 yards per attempt. When Alabama faced Virginia Tech in 1973, its running game could not be stopped.
Jackson had his speed and efficiency on display at Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa. He collected 138 yards rushing yards on five carries, to a tune of 27.6 yards per rush. His effectiveness on the No. 2 team in the nation led to the Tide getting a 77-6 victory. With him on the field, Alabama went undefeated in the 1973 regular season and won a Southeastern Conference title.
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Jackson had 752 rushing yards, 41 receiving yards, and eight scores. Despite suffering a 23-24 loss to Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl, he and the Tide were still crowned national champions via the Coaches’ Poll. He was presented with the Oustanding Back Award from the Birmingham Monday Morning Quarterback Club for his efforts. Jackson also earned Consensus All-American honors and was an All-SEC selection for his performance in 1973. In running the wishbone offense, he paced the Tide to scoring at least 35 points in eight of 12 games. He was a three-time SEC Champion (1971-73) and finished his career with 1,529 rushing yards.
Jackson still holds the school record for yards per carry average (7.2) and created opportunities for names such as Tony Nathan, Linnie Patrick, Gene Jelks, Kerry Goode, Derrick Lassic, Sherman Williams, Shaun Alexander, and many more.
Alabama has two Heisman-winning backs — Mark Ingram and Derrick Henry — and a new career rushing leader (Najee Harris), but Jackson started it all at the position. He was 32-4 during his time at Alabama, including a pair of 11 win seasons.
Jackson was selected in the first round (No. 9 overall) in the 1974 NFL Draft by the San Francisco 49ers.
He played six years in San Francisco (1974-79) and won NFC Rooke of the Year in 1974, after combining for 895 yards.
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Jackson would get traded to Washington and finished his nine-year career with the Redskins/Football Team.
As a running back and receiver, he posted a combined 5,424 yards and 17 touchdowns as an NFL player. He captured a Super Bowl Championship with Washington in the 1982 season with a 27-17 win over the Miami Dolphins in the 1983 matchup.
Jackson had three years where he tallied at least 700 yards rushing. He was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 2007; two years before Mitchell was elected. Jackson did not become a coach like Mitchell, but he showed running backs how to be versatile, how to win at the highest level, and he had a long career in the pros. He was the first black player for the Crimson Tide to get drafted in the first round.
Jackson opened the door for blacks to have a chance to start at skill positions at Alabama.
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Stephen M. Smith is the managing editor and senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith
