Signee Breakdown: QB Tayven Jackson

The early signing period is officially in the books, and Josh Heupel's program signed 20 players on December 15th. In this series, the Volunteer Country on

The early signing period is officially in the books, and Josh Heupel's program signed 20 players on December 15th. In this series, the Volunteer Country on Sports Illustrated staff share their full breakdown of each player, complete with bio, former Tennessee player and current NFL player comparisons, and what the Tennessee coaches had to say about each respective signee. Please keep in mind the NFL player comparisons are just a fun look at the potential upsides of each player and are not meant to set unlofty expectations or indicate a career trajectory. 

Bio

Tayven Jackson

Center Grove (Ind.)

Quarterback

6'4, 195 pounds

What the Coaches Said

Josh Heupel: "Two time state champion. Comes from an elite program. Understands the work habits you have to have on a daily basis to go achieve something individually and collectively as a team. I think he is just scratching the surface of what he is going to be as a quarterback. Long frame. Going to be able to continue to build that out. Has the ability to use his feet both in the pocket and out of the pocket. Has the ability to make plays downs the field as a passer. Has the ability to use his feet as a weapon and that is only going to continue to increase as he grows confidence in his body. Very compact, tight delivery and as he understands and learns some fundamental mental things, think he is going to have the chance to spread the ball sideline to sideline and vertically down the field. Elite basketball player. Has great spatial awareness, which is something I think is important and correlates over to playing the quarterback position as you understand bodies in motion and understand windows. We are really excited about him. He knows how to lead. Those attributes and characteristics are really important inside of your program as you build around a quarterback. We really feel like, just an opportunity watching him throw and then seeing some footage of him, he's just scratching the surface of his quarterback development. A really good basketball player. Family's got a really good basketball player in it. His brother will be a high lottery pick this year, but his ability on the court to just feel space and movement, I love seeing quarterbacks play on the court. He's got a strong arm. He's got an unbelievably quick delivery for his size and length. He's going to continue to mature into his frame. Has the feet to move inside of the pocket, extend plays outside of it as well. A guy that did a great job of building this class around him. One of our earlier commitments, wanted great players. I think our recruits gravitated towards his personality. That's important, too, as you bring your quarterback into the locker room that he's able to grab followership from the guys around him."

𝙉𝙀𝙓𝙏 𝙇𝙀𝙑𝙀𝙇 » Tayven Jackson

• Winning mentality
• Natural athlete
• Smooth in the pocket

Hear what @tayvenjacksonn2 brings to the QB room. pic.twitter.com/0kwjrGFLMF

— Tennessee Football (@Vol_Football) December 15, 2021

Joey Halzle: "First thing Tayven is going to bring is a winning attitude. He has won two straight state championship and hasn't lost a football game in two years. Smooth athlete. Raw in his development. A guy that is a three-sport guy. State champion also in basketball. A guy that ran track on a whim this spring and won state in the 400. Just a natural athlete in every respect of the game. Tayven is extremely smooth in the way he operates. He can make throws off schedule. He can make them off base from awkward body positions. He can just really do everything athletic at a high level. Some things that stand out to me (when watching his tape) are just one how incredibly smooth he is up top. As he moves around in the pocket, his upper body stays calm and keeps a good base. 

Volunteer Country's Take

Tennessee landed their guy in the Indiana signal-caller. As Joey Halzle mentioned, Jackson is raw in his development, but the potential is certainly there. He has room to add to mass and definition to his frame, which will only allow him to improve his downfield passing and durability. Jackson is a natural athlete, who can hurt defenses with well-timed runs and a natural escapability. He can spray the ball sideline to sideline, and he should benefit greatly from a year behind Hendon Hooker in the quarterback room. A lively competitor, Jackson will attack every day in Tennessee and should see his game grow during his time in Knoxville. 

Current NFL Player Comparison- Justin Herbert

 This comparison is based more on where Herbert was coming into college versus where he is now. But the ceiling is there for Jackson as well. Both players possess similar frames, with Herbert being a inch taller. Herbert was a natural athlete with a tremendous amount of raw arm talent, similar to Jackson. As Jackson adds to his frame, the big question will be if his arm strength can match up to Herbert's. Much like Jackson, coming out of the prep ranks, Herbert had not thrown a tremendous amount of passes, but his potential was evident. He developed into a first round pick at Oregon, and Tennessee's staff will have a chance to do the same with Jackson. Neither are going to beat you with their legs, but you have to account for them. Jordan Love, another former Heupel quarterback recruit, is another player that Jackson compares to with his escapability and accuracy on the run.