View source for Kevin Jackson

{{Short description|American wrestler and coach (born 1964)}}
{{About|the wrestler|other people called Kevin Jackson|Kevin Jackson (disambiguation)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}}
{{Infobox amateur wrestler
| name = Kevin Jackson
| image = Coach Kevin Jackson, ISU Head Wrestling Coach (6217569505) (cropped).jpg
| alt = 
| caption = Jackson in 2011
| weight = 82 kg
| birth_date = {{birth-date and age|November 25, 1964}}<ref name="sref" />
| birth_place = [[Highland Falls, New York]], U.S.<ref name="sref" />
| death_date = 
| death_place = 
| high school = [[Eastern High School (Michigan)|Lansing Eastern (MI)]]
| state championships = 2 ([[Michigan]])
| college = [[Iowa State University]]
| ncaa championships = 1 Team Championship
| olympic team = <!-- see medal templates below -->
| olympic medal = <!-- see medal templates below -->
| status = Head Development Coach at Olympic Training Center, Former Coach of [[Iowa State University]]
| module =
  {{Infobox martial artist|child=yes
  | other_names     = 
  | nationality     =
  | height          = {{height|ft=5|in=10}}
  | weight          = {{convert|199|lb|kg st|abbr=on}}
  | mma_kowin       = 1
  | mma_subwin      = 3
  | mma_decwin      =
  | mma_koloss      =
  | mma_subloss     = 2
  | mma_decloss     =
  | mma_draw        =
  | mma_nc          =
  | sherdog         = 172
  | updated         =
  }}
| show-medals = yes
| medaltemplates = 
{{MedalSport|Men's [[freestyle wrestling]] }}
 {{MedalCountry | the {{USA}} }}
{{MedalCompetition|[[Wrestling at the Summer Olympics|Olympic Games]]}}
[[File:Olympic rings.svg|center|80px]]
 {{MedalGold| [[1992 Summer Olympics|1992 Barcelona]] | [[Wrestling at the 1992 Summer Olympics – Men's freestyle 82 kg|82&nbsp;kg]] }}
{{MedalCompetition|[[World Wrestling Championships|World Championships]]}}
 {{MedalGold| [[1991 World Wrestling Championships|1991 Varna]] | [[1991 World Wrestling Championships#Men's freestyle|82&nbsp;kg]] }}
 {{MedalGold| [[1995 World Wrestling Championships|1995 Atlanta]] | [[1995 World Wrestling Championships#Men's freestyle|82&nbsp;kg]] }}
{{MedalCompetition|[[Pan American Games]]}}
 {{MedalGold| [[1991 Pan American Games|1991 Havana]] | [[Wrestling at the 1991 Pan American Games|82&nbsp;kg]]}}
 {{MedalGold| [[1995 Pan American Games|1995 Mar del Plata]] | [[Wrestling at the 1995 Pan American Games|82&nbsp;kg]]}}
{{MedalSport|[[Collegiate wrestling|Collegiate Wrestling]]}}
{{MedalCompetition|[[NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships|NCAA Division I Championships]]}}
{{MedalCountry|the [[Iowa State Cyclones wrestling|Iowa State Cyclones]]}}
{{MedalSilver|[[1987 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships|1987 College Park]]|167 lb}}
{{MedalCountry|the [[LSU Tigers and Lady Tigers|LSU Tigers]]}}
{{MedalBronze|[[1983 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships|1983 Oklahoma City]]|158 lb}}
{{MedalBronze|[[1984 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships|1984 East Rutherford]]|158 lb}}
}}

'''Kevin Andre Jackson''' (born November 25, 1964)<ref name="sref">{{cite Sports-Reference |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ja/kevin-jackson-1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200418083950/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ja/kevin-jackson-1.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=April 18, 2020 |title=Kevin Jackson |access-date=May 21, 2015}}</ref> is an American retired [[Freestyle wrestling|freestyle]] and [[Folkstyle wrestling|folkstyle wrestler]], and [[Mixed martial arts|mixed martial artist]]. Following his competitive career, Jackson would become a [[wrestling]] coach.

During his international career, Jackson became an [[Wrestling at the 1992 Summer Olympics – Men's freestyle 82 kg|Olympic Gold medalist in 1992]], a two-time [[World Wrestling Championships|World Champion]] ([[1991 World Wrestling Championships|1991]] and [[1995 World Wrestling Championships|1995]]), a three-time [[Wrestling World Cup|World Cup]] Gold medalist (1993, 1995 and 1997, bronze in 1994) a two-time [[Wrestling at the Pan American Games|Pan American Games]] Gold medalist ([[Wrestling at the 1991 Pan American Games|1991]] and [[Wrestling at the 1995 Pan American Games|1995]]) and a two-time [[Pan American Wrestling Championships|Pan American]] Champion (1990 and 1991). In folkstyle, Jackson was a four-time [[NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships|NCAA Division I]] [[All-America#Wrestling|All-American]], thrice for the [[LSU Tigers and Lady Tigers#Men's wrestling|LSU Tigers]] and once for the [[Iowa State Cyclones wrestling|Iowa State Cyclones]], after [[Louisiana State University]] dropped its wrestling program.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Kevin Jackson {{!}} National Wrestling Hall of Fame|url=https://nwhof.org/blog/dg-inductees/kevin-jackson/|access-date=2020-11-23|language=en-US}}</ref> He also stepped into the [[Ultimate Fighting Championship#Cage|UFC Octagon]] in four occasions, winning his first two bouts and losing the next two, all finishing via submission.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Fighting|first=M. M. A.|date=2009-05-01|title=UFC 14 winner Kevin Jackson to coach at Iowa State|url=https://www.mmafighting.com/2009/05/01/ufc-14-winner-kevin-jackson-to-coach-at-iowa-state|access-date=2020-11-23|website=MMA Fighting|language=en}}</ref> After spending the last four years as USA Wrestling's<ref>{{Cite web|title=Kevin Jackson's Freestyle Wrestling Fundamentals - Wrestling -- Championship Productions, Inc.|url=https://www.championshipproductions.com/cgi-bin/champ/p/Wrestling/Kevin-Jacksons-Freestyle-Wrestling-Fundamentals_WRD-02206.html|access-date=2020-11-23|website=www.championshipproductions.com}}</ref> National Freestyle Developmental Coach, Jackson made the move to Ann Arbor, MI to serve as an Assistant Wrestling Coach for the University of Michigan.<ref name="UMich Bio">{{Cite web|title=Kevin Jackson - Assistant Coach - Staff Directory|url=https://mgoblue.com/staff-directory/kevin-jackson/3850|access-date=2022-02-19|website=University of Michigan Athletics|language=en}}</ref>

==Biography==

=== High school ===
The native of [[Lansing, Michigan]], won two state high school championships for [[Eastern High School (Michigan)|Eastern High School]] before becoming a Junior National [[Greco-Roman wrestling]] champion.

===College===
As a college wrestler, he attended [[Louisiana State University|LSU]] and earned All-America honors three times before the school dropped the sport. He transferred to [[Iowa State University|Iowa State]] for his senior year and captained the Cyclones' last NCAA championship team (1987), earning another All-America award with an NCAA runner-up finish and registering a 30-3-1 record.

==Career==
In 1992 he won an Olympic gold medal in wrestling and was invited to join "Team Foxcatcher", but was let go the next year when [[John du Pont]] started getting paranoid delusions and did not want anything black in his estate, from cars to horses to people. Soon after, Jackson won two [[Pan American Games]] titles and was a member of World Championship teams for the United States in both 1993 and 1995. He won three U.S. National Titles and placed second five times. Jackson also became the first American to win the prestigious Takhti Cup (1998) in [[Tehran]], [[Iran]].
During his post-collegiate competitive career, Jackson also assisted with the Cyclone Wrestling Club (1989–92) and volunteered with the [[Arizona State University|Arizona State]] (1997) program.

Jackson participated in [[mixed martial arts]] in 1997, when he joined the [[Ultimate Fighting Championship]] to become only the 2nd Olympic Gold medalist wrestler to step in the octagon,<ref>{{cite web|title=UFC Olympic Gold Medalist wrestlers|url=http://www.ufc.com/news/Cejudo-Chases-a-New-Kind-of-Gold|access-date=August 28, 2014}}</ref> eventually winning the ''[[UFC 14]]'' Light Heavyweight tournament. He fought [[Frank Shamrock]] for the inaugural [[UFC Light Heavyweight Championship]] at ''[[UFC Japan]]'', but lost via armbar submission. He retired from MMA competition in 1998 after six fights.

Jackson's success earned him a number of major awards, including the 1995 [[John Smith (American wrestler)|John Smith]] Award as National Freestyle Wrestler of the Year, 1992 Amateur Wrestling News Man of the Year and 1991 USA Wrestling and USOC Wrestler of the Year. Jackson is a member of the FILA International Wrestling Hall of Fame, the [[National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum|National Wrestling Hall of Fame]] (as a Distinguished Member) and the Iowa State University Athletics Hall of Fame. In October 2019, Jackson was inducted into the LSU Hall of Fame and is the only wrestler to be inducted.

Jackson has worked extensively as a wrestling coach. He was the freestyle coach at the [[United States Olympic Training Center|Olympic Training Center]] and head coach for the U.S. Army team at [[Fort Carson]] (1998–2001) and was head coach of the [[Sunkist Kids|Sunkist]] youth development program, National Freestyle coach for [[USA Wrestling]] for eight years (2001–08) and the freestyle wrestling coach for two United States' teams at the Olympics.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cyclones.com//ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=10700&ATCLID=3731180 |title=Kevin Jackson Named ISU Head Wrestling Coach – Iowa State University Athletics Official Web Site – www.CYCLONES.com – The home of Iowa State Cyclone Sports |publisher=www.CYCLONES.com |access-date=February 10, 2012}}</ref><ref name="ISU Bio">{{cite web |title=Kevin Jackson - Wrestling Coach |url=https://cyclones.com/sports/wrestling/roster/coaches/kevin-jackson/792 |website=Iowa State University Athletics |language=en}}</ref> Jackson served as head coach of [[Iowa State Cyclones wrestling|Iowa State Cyclones]] from 2010 to 2017 where he coached 4 NCAA champions, 14 All-Americans, and 9 Big-12 Champions.<ref name="UMich Bio" /> In June 2017 Kevin went back to the [[United States Olympic Training Center|Olympic Training Center]] as a US National Team Freestyle development coach and launched the Elite Accelerated Program (EAP).

==Championships and awards==
* '''[[Ultimate Fighting Championship]]'''
** [[UFC 14]] Middleweight tournament winner
**'''[[List_of_UFC_encyclopedia_award_recipients|UFC Encyclopedia Awards]]'''
***[[List_of_UFC_encyclopedia_award_recipients|Submission of the Night]] (One time) {{small|vs. [[Tony Fryklund]]}}<ref>{{cite book |last= Gerbasi|first= Thomas|date= 2011-10-17|title= UFC Encyclopedia - The Definitive Guide to the Ultimate Fighting Championship|location= New York|publisher= DK|page= 163|isbn=978-0756683610}}</ref>

* '''[[Wrestling Observer Newsletter]]'''
** [[List of Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards#Fight of the Year|Fight of the Year]] (1998) <small> vs. Jerry Bohlander on March 13</small>

==Mixed martial arts record==
{{MMArecordbox
| draws= 
| nc= 
| ko-wins= 1
| ko-losses= 
| sub-wins= 3
| sub-losses= 2
| dec-wins= 
| dec-losses= 
| dq-wins= 
| dq-losses= 
| other-wins= 
| other-losses= 
}}
{{MMA record start}}
|-
| {{yes2}}Win
| align=center | 4–2
| [[Sam Adkins (fighter)|Sam Adkins]]
| Submission (armbar)
| Extreme Challenge 18
| {{dts|1998|May|15|format=mdy}}
| align=center | 1
| align=center | 4:21
| [[Davenport, Iowa]], United States
|
|-
| {{no2}}Loss
| align=center | 3–2
| [[Jerry Bohlander]]
| Technical Submission (armbar)
| [[UFC 16]]
| {{dts|1998|March|13|format=mdy}}
| align=center | 1
| align=center | 10:23
| [[Kenner, Louisiana]], United States
| {{small|Fight of the Year (1998).}}
|-
| {{no2}}Loss
| align=center | 3–1
| [[Frank Shamrock]]
| Submission (armbar)
| [[UFC Japan]]
| {{dts|1997|December|21|format=mdy}}
| align=center | 1
| align=center | 0:16
| [[Yokohama]], Japan
| {{small|For the inaugural [[UFC Light Heavyweight Championship]].}}
|-
| {{yes2}}Win
| align=center | 3–0
| [[Tony Fryklund]]
| Submission (rear-naked choke)
| rowspan=2|[[UFC 14]]
| rowspan=2|{{dts|1997|July|27|format=mdy}}
| align=center | 1
| align=center | 0:44
| rowspan=2|[[Birmingham, Alabama]], United States
| {{small|Won the UFC 14 Light Heavyweight Tournament.}}
|-
| {{yes2}}Win
| align=center | 2–0
| Todd Butler
| TKO (submission to punches)
| align=center | 1
| align=center | 1:27
|
|-
| {{yes2}}Win
| align=center | 1–0
| [[John Lober]]
| Submission (arm-triangle choke)
| Extreme Fighting 4
| {{dts|1997|March|28|format=mdy}}
| align=center | 2
| align=center | 1:12
| [[Des Moines, Iowa]], United States
|
{{end}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{Sherdog}}
* {{UFC|kevin-jackson}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090228232224/http://www.wrestlinghalloffame.org/wrestlers.php?wrestler=1222 Kevin Jackson at the National Wrestling Hall of Fame Site]

{{Footer Olympic Champions freestyle wrestling middleweight}}
{{World Champions freestyle wrestling middleweight}}
{{UFC Tournament Champions}}
{{IowaStateWrestlingCoach}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, Kevin}}
[[Category:1964 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:American wrestling coaches]]
[[Category:Iowa State Cyclones wrestlers]]
[[Category:Iowa State Cyclones wrestling coaches]]
[[Category:LSU Tigers wrestlers]]
[[Category:Wrestlers at the 1992 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:American male sport wrestlers]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 1992 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Olympic gold medalists for the United States in wrestling]]
[[Category:Martial artists from Phoenix, Arizona]]
[[Category:American male mixed martial artists|J]]
[[Category:Mixed martial artists utilizing freestyle wrestling]]
[[Category:Mixed martial artists utilizing Greco-Roman wrestling]]
[[Category:World Wrestling Championships medalists]]
[[Category:Wrestlers at the 1991 Pan American Games]]
[[Category:Wrestlers at the 1995 Pan American Games]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 1991 Pan American Games]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 1995 Pan American Games]]
[[Category:Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States in wrestling]]
[[Category:Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters]]
[[Category:20th-century American sportsmen]]