Syracuse’s former top receiver Courtney Jackson enters transfer portal

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Syracuse wide receiver Courtney Jackson announced on Tuesday that he will enter the transfer portal via Twitter. Despite being a graduate student next year, he will have two years of eligibility left due to the extra year the NCAA granted to athletes following the COVID-19 pandemic.

Jackson finished his fourth season with the Orange on Saturday, recording 201 yards on 15 receptions. Averaging over 13 yards per catch, the redshirt sophomore caught just one touchdown despite being touted as someone who could have had a breakout season for the Orange.

After finishing his first two seasons with just 72 receiving yards across 12 games, Jackson led Syracuse in receiving yards last year with 389. He also caught three touchdowns and helped on kick and punt returns, a role he reprised periodically this season.

The receiver started this season with 168 receiving yards and a touchdown through Syracuse’s first five games. Then, following a combination of poor offensive performances and the emergence of Oronde Gadsden II as SU’s No. 1 receiving threat, Jackson did not record a catch for the next five games. He had an additional three receptions for 33 yards in his final two games with the Orange.

Jackson originally committed to Syracuse in 2018 as a three-star recruit from Pennsylvania. He was the No. 67 receiver in the 2019 class and the No. 5 overall prospect from the state, according to ESPN. He was recruited by former assistant coaches Justin Lustig — now at Vanderbilt — and Kim McCloud, who is currently on staff at Montana. He chose Syracuse over other Power 5 schools such as Baylor and Kentucky, among seven other Division I offers.

He is the third player to enter the transfer portal for the Orange. The other two were also wide receivers: freshman Dom Foster and Anthony Queeley.