The South Dakota State Jackrabbits (MVFC) have moved quickly to fill the vacancy created by Jimmy Rogers’s departure by naming Dan Jackson as head coach. Jackson was most recently with the Idaho Vandals (Big Sky) as the defensive coordinator for the 2024 season.
Jackson was a player at South Dakota State from 2003 through 2005 and eventually embarked on a coaching journey in 2012 as a graduate assistant for the Jacks. After two seasons as a GA, Jackson was promoted to the defensive backs coach from 2014 through 2018. In 2019, he was named an assistant head coach, cornerbacks coach, special teams coordinator, and recruiting coordinator.
Jackson joined Northern Illinois in 2020 as the cornerbacks coach and co-special teams coordinator. In 2021, he maintained those duties along with the pass defense coordinator responsibilities thrown in. For the 2022 and 2023 seasons, Jackson was the defensive backs coach for Vanderbilt. He was named Idaho’s defensive coordinator for the 2024 season where the Vandals reached the FCS quarterfinals for the second straight year.
Jackson will have the responsibility of replacing Jimmy Rogers, who left for Washington State (Pac-12) earlier this week. Rogers went 27-3 overall, 15-1 in the MVFC, won two conference titles, and captured the 2023 FCS National Championship in his two seasons. The Jacks will open the 2025 season with back-to-back games against Big Sky foes against Sacramento State at home on August 30 and a road game at Montana State on September 6. SDSU will end the non-conference schedule with home games against Drake (Pioneer) on September 13 and Mercyhurst (Northeast) on September 27 before starting their MVFC slate at Youngstown State on October 4.
Photo Credit to South Dakota State University Athletics
