Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 2 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 21-49@ Nebraska | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | W 29-27vs Jacksonville State | 3 | 2 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 3 tackles |
| Total | 4 | 3 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 |
#21
Ronald Jackson Jr.
Senior cornerback on Ohio's 2026 roster.
6′1″ · 203 lb · Detroit, MI · Belleville
Returning to Ohio for 2026
Recruiting
3★
S recruit
No. 2793 nationally · Signed with Akron
No college snaps yet.
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
4 cornerback on Ohio's 2026 roster.
- Signed as a 3-star recruit to Akron in 2020.
- Transferred from Old Dominion to Ohio in 2025.
Ronald Jackson Jr.
Moves between deep coverage and the slot. Five head coaches in five seasons, at two different programs. One game to point at: 3 tackles, 1 TFL against Jacksonville State — Week 2, 2026.
4 TACKLES · 0 SACKS
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- season totals
- positional archetype classification
- head-coach lineage
- game log
His career
2020
- Signed with Akron3-star out of Belleville
2025
- Entered the portal
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★
CFB
College
2 teams
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2020–2026
4 coachesPlayed under 4 different head coaches: Frank Solich, Tim Albin, Brian Smith, and John Hauser. Multi-era developmental context.
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2020Akron1-5HC: Tom Arth · Run-leaning, slow tempo
2021Akron2-10HC: Oscar Rodriguez · Run-leaning
2022Akron2-10HC: Joe Moorhead · Pass-leaning
2025Ohio9-4HC: Brian Smith · Run-heavy
2026Ohio1-1HC: John Hauser · Run-heavy
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
Concern: tackles (0th percentile).
Box-score production (6)
Percentiles are versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score production. There are no play-by-play efficiency bars here: CFBD's play-value model credits offensive players only, so no defensive EPA exists to rank.
Splits & context
Splits
Per-game splits
Through 2 games: 2.0 TKL/g, 0.5 TFL/g, 0.0 SACK/g, 0.0 PD/g — splits start at 3 games.
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
John Hauser
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2021
Rotational
Tackle volume for the position in rotation-piece range.
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Career stats
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 2 · 2026
W 29–27
3 TOT · 2 SOLO · 1 TFL
A wire-to-wire battle — won by 2 at home.
With D. James-Hamilton — 1 SOLO · 1 TD · 3 TOT · M. Vezza — 80 yds · 1 TD · 0 INT · QBR 53.9 · 67 rush yds (12 car)
Game log
How he plays
Play style
Moves between deep coverage and the slot — the modern positionless DB.
CFB Index positional classification
2026 Outlook
Ohio
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Cornerback · Ohio
Returning around him
- Transfer portal: +3 net (19 in / 16 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Ohio · Last season: 9-4 · Talent rank #129 · 2026 recruiting class #107
DNA match
Player DNA
Hybrid Nickel
Moves between deep coverage and the slot — the modern positionless DB.
CB
His 2021 production profile sits closest to Arnold Azunna’s 2021 season.
90%match
Matches Arnold on
Class year
Height
PD rate
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a sophomore, his production profile tracks closest to Tanner Wall's sophomore season at BYU (2023).
98%match
All-Big 12
Matches Tanner on
Class year
Height
PD rate
Player DNA
Players who play like Ronald Jackson Jr.
Background
2025: Appeared in two games. 2024 (Montana): Jackson will see an increased roll and should compete for a starting job in the defensive secondary after a breakout season… Also expected to be a standout on special teams. 2023 (Montana): Academic All-Big Sky... Transferred to Montana in time for win...
The secondary · Ohio
- #5Adonis Williams Jr.75 tackles · 2025
- #2DJ Walker55 tackles · 2025
- #7Tank Pearson49 tackles · 2025
- #9Michael Mack II35 tackles · 2025
- #21Ronald Jackson Jr.2 tackles · 2025
27 more on the roster · Ohio team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology