He was named the greatest athlete of all time by ESPN. This caused deterioration of the femoral head, ultimately requiring that the hip be replaced. "[38], Jackson's collegiate baseball coach, Hal Baird, told the Tampa Bay Times that no one from either camp ever mentioned the trip to him, and feared the worst when Jackson told him that the trip had been paid for. [11], Through the 1990s, Jackson dabbled in acting, having made several television guest appearances first on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air in 1990 as well as Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, Moesha, and Married with Children. He was honored with the Tony Conigliaro Award. He was named after Vince Edwards, his mother's favorite actor. His is one of only three numbers retired at Auburn. Baird maintained that had he known about the trip, he would have told Jackson about the SEC rule that barred him from playing professional football while being an amateur in baseball. He has been successful with other investments, including a food company, N'Genuity. The tornadoes claimed hundreds of lives and left many Alabama residents without power.
He also appeared in an episode of the TV series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman in which he plays a basketball game with Clark Kent/Superman. He vowed not to sign with Tampa Bay should they draft him, but they proceeded anyway. Jackson was told by the Buccaneers that the trip had been cleared by the NCAA and SEC. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Even in failure Jackson showed amazing athleticism and strength, as he did on those occasions when he broke his bat in two over his thigh after striking out. Initially, Jackson stated he would continue to focus on baseball and would not sign, but his interest was piqued when he learned Raiders owner Al Davis was a fan of Jackson and was receptive to the idea of Jackson playing both baseball and football. From Auburn's own 34-yard line, Bo Jackson and company began a long drive as he converted on a 4th-and-1 at the Alabama 42. ("Snerdley" was a last name that Golden's employer, Rush Limbaugh, frequently used as a placeholder name. The only athlete to be named an All-Star in two major sports.
The White Sox went on to win that game on a 9th-inning walk-off home run, then swept the Houston Astros for their first championship in 88 years. Auburn responded as Al Del Greco made a 23-yard field goal to make it a 2217 score in the 4th quarter.
On fourth down with 2:26 left in the game, Jackson completed the drive by going over the top for a 1-yard TD run as Auburn (finished 9-3 in '82) pulled off a 23-22 victory over Alabama and its legendary coach, Paul "Bear" Bryant. He was so angry at the Buccaneers' actions that he vowed never to play a down for them, going as far as to tell Culverhouse, "You draft me if you want. "[49] This "Bo Knows" marketing campaign was for the release of the Nike Air Trainer I, a cross-training shoe, the first of its kind. When asked if he ran a 4.12 40-yard dash at the 1986 NFL Scouting Combine, the fastest time ever recorded in NFL Combine history and a time that has been rumored from several sources,[21] Jackson claimed some of the coaches hand-timed him at 3.9 and 4.0, but that he actually ran a 4.13 electronic-timed 40-yard dash at a pro day at the University of Auburn. "The game has gotten so violent, so rough.
Unwilling to pay his $2.375 million salary in 1991 to rehabilitate his football injury, the Royals released Jackson on March 18, 1991.[31]. Jackson missed much of his senior season after being ruled ineligible by the NCAA following a visit with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who he believes tried to sabotage his baseball career. Jackson can be unlocked as a player in ESPN NFL Football. "Distance is the only thing I hate about track," he said. In 2013, the bank was acquired by First Community Financial Bank, who retained Jackson as a board member.
Jackson finished the game with two hits in four at-bats, one run scored, and two RBI. Shortly after the draft, Jackson signed a 3-year contract with the Kansas City Royals worth just over $1 million. [10] He was recruited by head coach Pat Dye and then Auburn assistant coach Bobby Wallace.
Jackson is married to Linda, a rehabilitation counselor, and has three children sons Garrett and Nicholas, and a daughter, Morgan. [20], Jackson qualified for the NCAA nationals in the 100-meter dash in his freshman and sophomore years. Following surgery and rehabilitation, it was discovered that Jackson had avascular necrosis, as a result of decreased blood supply to the head of his left femur. Prior to the game Seahawks linebacker Brian Bosworth insulted Jackson and promised in a media event before the game to contain Jackson. He was also in the episode 'Naked Babies' (1995) on Diagnosis Murder, playing a nanny to four babies who had just had their mother kidnapped. During his time with the White Sox, Jackson had no stolen bases, although he did play in his only career postseason games.
Vincent Edward "Bo" Jackson (born November 30, 1962) is an American former professional baseball and American football player. He added a third with a reception. [68], On July 12, 2010, Jackson threw the ceremonial first pitch before the 2010 Home Run Derby at Angel Stadium[69] and participated in the celebrity softball game. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. Jackson's athletic career was affected by an injury to his left hip.
And the people that did know that, they wouldn't tell anybody," he said. In decathlon, he reached 8340 points.
Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. [55][56] Players would make the popular move of running Bo all the way back to his own 1 yard line, then run 99 yards for a touchdown with defenders literally bouncing off him. As a hurdler, he recorded times of 7.29 seconds in the 55m hurdles and 13.81 seconds in the 110m hurdles. The scout also noted that this was his first year playing baseball and he seemed to be a "do it all type of player" and also stated he was "the best pure athlete in America today". Jackson shared the backfield with Marcus Allen, himself an All-Pro and former Heisman Trophy winner, but eventually supplanted him as the featured running back despite being listed as the team's fullback.
[16], In an April 1985 report, a major league scout stated that Jackson's only weakness was a lack of baseball experience. [8] In 1982, Jackson set state school records for indoor high jump (6ft 9in (2.06m)) and triple jump (48ft 8in (14.83m)).[9]. He would hit 16 home runs and 45 RBIs that season, helping lead the White Sox to the American League West Division crown. He also made a 91-yard run in the 2nd quarter, to the outside, untouched down the sideline. ", Radio personality James Golden adopted the stage name "Bo Snerdley" in homage to Jackson. [33], Jackson became a popular figure for his athleticism in multiple sports through the late 1980s and early 1990s. Jackson finished his career with an average of 6.6 yards (6.0 m) per carry, which set the SEC record (minimum 400 rushes). He also ran the 100-yard dash in 9.54 seconds. [51][52], In 1992, the American hip-hop group A Tribe Called Quest referenced Jackson in their song "Scenario. The next day Nike ran a full-page ad in USA Today; it simply read "Bo Knew." [66] Jackson and his family live in Burr Ridge, Illinois. Go beyond basketball, baseball, and football to see what you know about chukkas, arnis, and batsmen. [32] White Sox co-owner Jerry Reinsdorf stated they did not anticipate him to play all seasons while he addressed his hip issues and avascular necrosis. In addition to this, Davis gave Jackson the highest salary of any non-quarterback player in NFL history, and Jackson would be receiving a reported $500,000 signing bonus plus another $500,000 if he returned the following year in 1988.[42][43]. For the 1994 season, he was signed as a free agent by the California Angels for one final season, where he hit another 13 home runs in 201 at bats, before retiring during the strike. Jackson played college football as a running back for the Auburn Tigers, and won the Heisman Trophy in 1985. In 2007, Jackson was ranked #8 on ESPN's Top 25 Players In College Football History list. [50], The CHIKARA professional wrestling tag team the Throwbacks (baseball player Dasher Hatfield and football player Mark "Mr. Touchdown" Angelosetti) have a finishing move called "Bo Jackson". In his rookie season, Jackson rushed for a total of 554 yards on only 81 carries for a 6.8 yards per carry average. He considered a career in track and field, but sprinting would not gain him the financial security of MLB or the NFL, nor would he have sufficient time to train, given his other commitments. Jackson, who ran 17 times for 114 yards during this Iron Bowl, continued marching his team downfield as he caught an 8-yard pass from QB Randy Campbell down to the Alabama 1-yard line. During the divisional round of the 1990 NFL playoffs in January, 1991, Jackson was tackled, causing a serious hip injury that ended his football career and threatened his baseball career. Despite stating publicly that he did not want to play for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Jackson was selected by the franchise with the first overall pick of the 1986 NFL draft. He kept his vow and opted to play baseball for the Kansas City Royals, the defending World Series champions, who had drafted him in the fourth round, 105th overall, in the 1986 amateur draft. His speech was centered on the benefits of stepping out of one's comfort zone. Jackson expanded into other pursuits, including the completion of his Bachelor of Science degree in Family and Child Development at Auburn.
Only 16 days after Jackson was released by the Royals, the Chicago White Sox offered him a three-year deal, guaranteeing $700,000 per season with a performance-based upside of $8.15million over the term.