Penn State offers cornerback transfer from Alabama
Penn State football has offered veteran Alabama cornerback, Khyree Jackson, who is in the transfer portal. Jackson has spent the past two seasons with the Crimson Tide and has two years of eligibility remaining.
The news comes at the start of the transfer portal window, which began on Monday.
Jackson appeared sparingly on defense for Alabama this season, starting at corner at Texas in the second week of the schedule. He also appeared in the opener against Utah State, seeing the most action of the season at 35 snaps, and again against Louisiana-Monroe in week three.
More notably, Jackson spent a considerable amount of time on special teams for the Crimson Tide. He played 104 snaps there, appearing in nine games, with time on kickoff coverage, punt return, punt coverage, and field goal defense. In all, he made seven tackles and was the program’s special teams player of the week in the opener.
The effort came following a debut in 2021, after a junior college stint in 2019 and 2020, in which Jackson saw 256 reps. A depth piece for Alabama, he made seven tackles and two pass breakups over 12 games.
Immediately upon entering the transfer portal, Jackson reported offers from Kentucky, Maryland, Southern Cal, Arkansas, Oregon, and Rutgers. However, he clarified on Twitter that, having entered the portal initially in the final week of November, the offers were from then as a graduate transfer. He since exited the portal and re-entered with senior status on Monday, not as a graduate transfer.
Jackson is originally from Upper Marlboro, Md. He was suspended by Alabama head coach Nick Saban, without specification, on Monday, Nov. 21.
Penn State transfer portal approach
Penn State head coach James Franklin acknowledged the work at hand for the program as it blazes through a busy month of December.
In addition to wrapping up the Class of 2023 recruiting efforts, and preparing for the Rose Bowl, Franklin told reporters Sunday night that the transfer portal and locking down its roster management will be a big part of the equation.
“I think balance is a good word. We’re trying to split our time between finishing up this traditional recruiting class,” Franklin said. “Obviously, we have an awareness of what’s going on in the transfer portal, which is about to hit hot and heavy here pretty soon. Making sure that we met with all of our current players before we left and making sure our guys finished strong academically and then, we’ll continue to practice.”
In case you missed it, BWI publisher Sean Fitz detailed Penn State’s transfer portal priorities on Monday.
