Jackrabbit Football Camps | SDSUHead Coach Dan Jackson |
Dan Jackson was named the 22nd head football coach in South Dakota State history on Dec. 31, 2024. His hiring marked a return to the Jackrabbit program which he previously was associated with as both a student-athlete and assistant coach.
Dan Jackson was named the 22nd head football coach in South Dakota State history on Dec. 31, 2024. His hiring marked a return to the Jackrabbit program which he previously was associated with as both a student-athlete and assistant coach.An Omaha native and a player at SDSU from 2003-05, Jackson joined the Jackrabbits’ coaching staff as a graduate assistant in 2012, when SDSU began its current streak of 13 consecutive appearances in the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs. He was elevated to cornerbacks coach in 2014 and also served as recruiting coordinator, special teams coordinator and assistant head coach under John Stiegelmeier before moving on to Northern Illinois following the 2019 season.
Jackson coached two seasons at Northern Illinois, then was hired at Vanderbilt, where he coached defensive backs during the 2022 and 2023 seasons. In 2024, Jackson became a defensive coordinator for the first time when he joined the coaching staff at Idaho under former Jackrabbit colleague Jason Eck. He also coached the linebackers for a Vandals squad that advanced to the quarterfinals of the FCS playoffs.