Seahawks mourn tragic death of former Oregon star, Vikings rookie Khyree Jackson

Minnesota Vikings rookie cornerback Khyree Jackson was one of three people killed following a horrific car crash in his home state of Maryland.

In the early Saturday morning hours in Prince George’s County, the 24-year-old Jackson and his former high school teammates Isaiah Hazel and Anthony Lytton Jr. were riding in a Dodge Charger when they were hit by an Infiniti Q50 driven by Cori Clingman. Hazel and Jackson were pronounced dead at the scene, while Lytton succumbed to his injuries at the University of Maryland Capital Region Medical Center.

According to a statement by Maryland State Police, “Investigators believe Clingman attempted to change lanes while driving at a high rate of speed when she struck the Dodge Charger” and another vehicle. No one in Clingman’s vehicle suffered injuries, neither did the sole occupant of the other vehicle that was also hit. Police suspect that alcohol was a factor in the crash, but as of this writing charges are pending against Clingman.

Jackson was selected early in the fourth round by the Minnesota Vikings and was well on course to be one of their exciting new corners under second-year defensive coordinator Brian Flores. While Jackson played two years at Alabama, he made a major name for himself as an All-Pac 12 standout at the University of Oregon.

There have been many tributes and condolences within the football community, including from the Seattle Seahawks.

Jackson’s road to the NFL involved incredible perseverance. As he told reporters at the time, Jackson was working behind the deli counter after briefly giving up football when he played at Arizona Western College. He soon found himself at Fort Scott Community College in Kansas, then joined Nick Saban’s Alabama powerhouse, and emerged as a star player at Oregon.

From Vikings.com:

In 2018, Jackson was two seasons removed from last playing football and had just earned Employee of the Month honors from his local Harris Teeter grocery store.

“I was working in the deli,” Jackson told Twin Cities media members via videoconference Saturday. “So I was cutting ham and stuff.”

[…]

After mentally letting go of football, focusing on his grocery store job and pursuing the NBA 2K League (he made it to the top 250 and was preparing for a draft in New York), Jackson found himself with a second opportunity to play at Fort Scott Community College in 2019.

And just like that, he was back on the field – but as a receiver.

“I went back and first played receiver. I felt like I had kind of earned my coach’s trust, and then I went to his office and told him, ‘You know, I wanted to play corner,’ “ Jackson said. “I let him know, ‘You know, I’m in junior college, I got to produce to kind of get out of here. … At least I can kind of control my own destiny.”

At 6-foot-3-and-3/4-inches and 194 pounds, Jackson isn’t a typical-sized cornerback.

He’s used his length (and 78-inch wingspan) to his advantage, though, and managed his size effectively, helping him go from JUCO ball, then to Alabama as a backup under Nick Saban and then to Oregon last season as a full-time starter.

This month should’ve been the first NFL training camp for Khyree Jackson. Instead his life, as well as the lives of his friends and ex-high school teammates Hazel and Lytton Jr, have all been senselessly cut short.

We also extend our condolences to the families and friends of all of the victims of this tragedy.