Cleveland Jackson Named Assistant Men's Basketball Coach/Head Junior Varsity Coach

Former Georgia Bulldog forward Cleveland Jackson has been named assistant men’s basketball coach and head junior varsity coach at Belmont Abbey College.

Jackson rejoins the coaching ranks after a two year absence in which he served as a family counselor and therapist for at-risk youth in Warner Robbins, Georgia.  During this time, he also ran his own AAU program and skills academy for youths aged 7-18.

Prior to his appointment as a counselor, Jackson served for seven years as an assistant coach at Mercer University in Macon, Georgia, where he was responsible for scouting, recruiting and conditioning. During his tenure there, the Bears claimed their first-ever Atlantic Sun regular season championship.

A high school standout at St. Monica Catholic High School in Los Angeles, California, Jackson, a three-year starter, led the team to an average of 25 wins per season.  During his junior year, he averaged 17 points per game, was the team's leading scorer and hit 51 percent from the floor and 76 percent of his free throws.

Jackson followed that up by averaging 16.5 points and 7.7 rebounds as a senior to earn all-league and all-region honors as well as being named MVP of the El Camino Conference.

With his high school career behind him, Jackson moved to the next level at Butler Community College in Kansas.  During his freshman year, he averaged 11 points and seven rebounds per game. As a sophomore, he finished the season averaging 25.9 points and 8.8 rebounds while leading his team to the national tournament. It was also during that campaign that he scored 49 points in a game, setting the school record for most points in a game that still stands today.

He was named Junior College Player of the Year by the Basketball Times and was a consensus first-team All-America pick by the National Junior College Athletics Association, Basketball Times and Basketball Weekly. His jersey number was retired by the school.

As a standout at the University of Georgia, Jackson finished his career by averaging 9.3 points and 2.9 rebounds per game, leading the Bulldogs to the postseason both seasons as Georgia advanced to the NIT in 1993 and 1994.

Following his collegiate career, Jackson played professionally in South America for one season before entering the coaching ranks.

He spent four seasons as the head coach at Campbell Hall High School before joining the staff at Mercer.
Jackson and his wife Shawn are the parents of three children: Cleveland Jr. (16), Camiya (13) and Camryn (9).