Georgians Dan Jackson, Demetrius Knight Jr. are two draftees worth celebrating

It was the sound of a dream coming true.

The Detroit Lions had called to inform Jackson, who had played his entire Bulldogs career as a walk-on, that they were selecting him with the first of their seventh-round picks.

The good guys don’t always win. Not everyone gets to see their wildest aspirations become reality. But it sure is fun when it happens and especially so when it’s against the supremely high odds that Jackson faced.

That Jackson, who enrolled as a walk-on at Georgia in 2019 out of North Hall High, made it onto the field for meaningful snaps for the Bulldogs was a triumph on its own.

Few walk-ons reach that goal for any FBS team, let alone powerhouse Georgia. But Jackson started four games for the Bulldogs in their 2021 national title season. The movie could well have ended there.

But he finished his career with 47 games played and 19 started. He earned All-SEC recognition in 2024. He persevered through significant injuries. He earned his degree in agribusiness.

“You look at a guy like Dan Jackson, he is what college football is all about, guys,” coach Kirby Smart said after the Bulldogs’ win over Georgia Tech in November. “He’s not asking for more money, he’s not trying to go somewhere else, the guy just loves Georgia.”

But even that wasn’t the end for Jackson. In 2019, all but one FBS program (including Georgia) decided he wasn’t worth a scholarship. Very roughly, those schools signed about 2,600 high school seniors to scholarships that year.

Last Saturday, he was the 230th player selected in the draft, ahead of five-star prospects, All-Americans and prospects who look more like NFL brutes than the 5-foot-11, 194-pound Jackson.

“He’s an overcomer,” Joe Jackson, a dentist, said of his middle son.

In 2019, the same year that Jackson enrolled at Georgia, Demetrius Knight Jr. started his first year at Georgia Tech. I wrote a story about him at the time, and one of my favorite details that I learned about him was provided by one of his math teachers at Strong Rock Christian School in Henry County. She told me that algebra didn’t come easily to him, nor did he like it. Still, he came in early for extra help, took notes in class, didn’t complain and wasn’t satisfied with merely passing, but wanted to understand the material well, knowing it would help him in college.

“He’s got a drive in him,” Marsha Sanders said at the time.

The next six years validated her assessment. He had committed to Tech to play quarterback for then-coach Paul Johnson but switched to linebacker for Johnson’s successor, Geoff Collins. Throughout his Yellow Jackets career, he had a hard time earning more than special-teams snaps. He came close to quitting, his mother Stephanie Knight told me Friday.

Covering Tech at the time, I remember a Yellow Jackets coach saying that Knight had NFL potential. While his physical skill set was impressive, I was dubious. He entered the transfer portal in the 2022 season, shortly after Collins had been fired. Because of COVID-19, he had two years of eligibility remaining.

The NFL seemed far away.

After graduating in December 2022 with a degree in literature, media and communication, he transferred to Charlotte, where the challenges grew far more real. He was finally a starting linebacker, but as a new father and husband, he faced difficulty providing for his wife, Jensy, and baby daughter, Kamila. To make ends meet, he got a job making DoorDash deliveries after practices and games.

On a couple occasions, when the need was too great, the Knights turned to food pantries for assistance, according to Stephanie Knight. Often, he walked the mile or two to campus so Jensy could have the car, sometimes even taking Kamila with him to class to give his wife a break.

“I know it was tough, but I think it was a good tough because it really made them work together as a team,” Stephanie Knight said. “They worked together as a unit, not eating out, making sure they were cooking, making sure they’re not just spending frivolously. They counted probably every dime and every nickel.”

But his standout play opened the door for a transfer to South Carolina, where he thrived. Despite being new to the team, he established himself as a leader and was named a captain. He received an award for his commitment to strength and conditioning. He started 10 games and was named the Gamecocks’ outstanding senior on a team that nearly made the College Football Playoff. With more bountiful name, image and likeness money, he could provide for his family.

Last Friday, it was no wonder when he broke down in tears when the Cincinnati Bengals called him to tell him they were making him their second-round pick.

Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

I asked his mother what the lessons were from her son’s college journey. She had a few.

Never feel like you’re a failure. Don’t give up, even when it’s hard. Have a purpose bigger than yourself.

“Because if it’s only about you, it’s only going to get you so far,” Stephanie Knight said. “It’s got to be about something and someone else that’s so much bigger than you.”

She remembers telling her son to just keep going, that it would eventually pay off.

“That’s always been my thing,” she said. “Just keep going, and the rest will take care of itself.”

The path doesn’t always end up in the NFL or wherever it is we want to end up. Even for Jackson and Knight, two young men who have made their families and communities proud, their football careers are hopefully only the start.

The examples are no less worth following.

May we all be overcomers and just keep going.