The junior corner back exploded onto the scene in his first season as the starting cornerback for Iowa after seasons behind Desmond King (Chargers) and Greg Mabin (49ers). Jackson led all major college football with 7 interceptions on the year. His 18 pass deflections were also second in the country behind Wisconsin’s Nick Nelson.
Many thought Iowa would be seeing their second winner of the Jim Thorpe Award in three seasons, after Desmond King’s win in 2015. But, it wasn’t to be.
The Thorpe Award winner had 33 tackles 7 PBUs and 1 INT. Josh Jackson had 33 tackles and led the country with 18 PBUs 7 INTs and scored 2 defensive TDs
— PlannedSickDays (@PlannedSickDays) December 8, 2017
Potential top ten NFL prospect Minkah Fitzpatrick took home the honor despite only having one interception on the 2017 campaign.