Corey Jackson Q&A: Rookie Card Before Business Card, Boomer Esiason Posters on the Wall, Brutal Fans in AFC North
Born in Camden, South Carolina, Corey Jackson was a multi-sport athlete in high school, excelling in track-and-field and on the hardwood of the basketball court at North Central High School in Kershaw, South Carolina.
After his high school career was over and at the age of 19 years old, Jackson quit his job at Walmart and bought a one-way Greyhound ticket to Ranger, Texas to attend Ranger College. Jackson earned his associate degree and was a star on the basketball court, averaging a double-double during the 1999-2000 season.
He then transferred to the University of Nevada at Reno where he continued his collegiate basketball career, but as fate would have it, he also started playing football.
A future in football is what was in the cards for Jackson in 2003. He signed a rookie free agent deal with the Cleveland Browns.
In 2004, Jackson played for the Frankfurt Galaxy in NFL Europe, where he was named the NFL Europe Defensive MVP.
After being signed to the Denver Broncos practice squads for both the 2005 and 2006 seasons, Jackson finished his professional football career with the New York Dragons of the Arena Football League in 2007.
Jackson has spent a career in the business world, now as the founder and CEO of Qwerkz, Incorporated, a US based recruiting firm.
Jackson is also a motivational speaker and influencer.
Recently, Jackson piqued my interest after a LinkedIn post, where he shared his 2003 Topps Total rookie card and made mention that this was his first card, long before any business card he would ever have made. He reinforced the value of that card and his time in sport that led to his success in the business world.
In our recent interview, I spoke to the former defensive force about his time on cardboard and his time in business.
Tony Reid- What was it like seeing yourself on a trading card for the first time?
Corey Jackson-It really is a crazy experience. We grew up collecting cards and trading them at school. We used to get the price guides and do all that stuff. Then, one day to see yourself on a card is a surreal feeling. Wow, this actually me on this card! As a kid, I was just collecting for fun, not knowing that one day I would have my own card. It’s crazy.
TR-What athlete's posters did you have on the wall as a kid? Who did you look to for inspiration?
CJ-I was a big basketball person as a kid because my parents didn’t want me playing football but I had all the football stuff, man. I used to get any type of magazine, anything that had pictures in it that I could cut out and I would hang them on the wall. It wasn’t just my favorite team, it was my favorite players that I admired and looked up to. I had wide receiver Al Toon with the Jets. I had Keith Byars, who played for the Eagles. It was a random collection of players that I either liked their mentality or grittiness or things that I identified with. I had a Boomer Esiason picture. It’s funny now that I think about it because it seems random but it was players I identified with or saw myself in. These guys just resonated with me and it wasn’t always the superstars.
TR-Your recent post on LinkedIn how you said that your 2005 Topps Total rookie card was your card before your business card. You had a very thoughtful post on how the business world and sports world meant to you. What was the motivation to make that post that day?
CJ-Something happened where I saw the card again. It was really interesting that this card exists and it’s a small fragment of my life but it propelled me into this direction to where I am now and what I am doing now. It made me think about what got me here and how that played a part. I just thought I would share my perspective on it.
TR-That is so powerful. As kids we had the great athletes we were drawn to for whatever reason and then tying in the fact that you were on a card yourself, which is equally as powerful. It was just a cool post. Do you have an area where you have items from your career displayed? I saw your number 94 Nevada jersey in your one post.
CS- I have all of my jerseys from all of the teams I played on. I have helmets. I have my jersey from NFL Europe. I think those things are cool to see and the experience of staying connected to a time and a period in your life is special. I came into the league as a basketball player and no one knew who I was and then all of these things materialized right in front of my eyes. It’s always a reminder to me just how your life can change for the better in a flash as long as you are true to who you are and you are giving your all and you have that work ethic and mindset. It’s a reminder to me. For my kids, I think it’s different. It becomes affirmation for them. For me, it’s more reflective and it reminds me I can do anything and nothing is beyond me.
TR-What did you take from your time in sports that translated well to your business ventures?
CS-Sports is so directly related to how we live our lives. I think that’s why so many people who aren’t even athletes are drawn to sports. It resonates and it crosses a lot of sectors of business, everyday life, time with your kids and family. If you follow me enough you will see a pattern of how I explain things through the concepts of sports. Starting a business as an athlete you have no idea, no framework of how to start a business. So, what I did was take a step back and look at what I know. I would look at how an NFL team is run. You have to have certain people in place. You have to have a general manager, a coach even all the way to someone working in the ticket office. When I build out my business I know I am the not the person who should be doing all of these things. When most people start a company, they try to do everything. What I learned from sports is that there is a system that you have to put together. I had no framework of business. I had to lean into my sports experience and it was all relative. It led to a path to have some sort of success in business.
TR-Cleveland's Dawg Pound is one of the most rabid fan bases in the sport. What was it like playing in front of them?
CJ-When you play in the AFC North, it’s brutal. When you go on the road and you are in Pittsburgh, we used to always go back and forth with the fans. My first year with the Browns, I was always week to week. Basically the guys that are week to week, who might be a part of the 53 man roster on game day, pretty much the day of the game at the hotel before you get on the bus to go to the stadium, they send someone to you to tell you if you are up or down. If you are up you are on the roster. If you are down you aren’t playing. A lot of fans would know you are not dressing that game. The opposing fans would go hard. They would say ‘You aren’t playing today. You suck. Your stat line is going to look just like mine today.’ I would say ‘Yeah, I’m not playing today but there is a chance, at some point, at some time I will play but there is a zero chance at some point, at some time, that you will ever be able to suit up and put these pads on.’ We used to have a lot of fun with the fans. They would be hard on us but it was fun. It was all fun. Fans like to get that interaction and engagement. We would entertain it because it was fun and it was motivating, like, man, I got to play next week!
Tony Reid spent more than a decade covering combat sports at the highest level. He has written hundreds of articles and conducted hundreds of interviews about sports collectibles for such publications as Beckett, Sports Collectors Digest, and Sports Collectors Daily. Reid worked full time at a sports card shop in Central Pennsylvania for a number of years. A lifelong collector, Tony treasures his rookie card collection of star players in baseball, basketball, and football. If you want to discuss the greatness of Michael Jordan, Bo Jackson or Ken Griffey Jr., you can reach him at @tonyreidwrites on all social media platforms