These days, 2025 four-star point guard Tyler Jackson from Baltimore is being recruited hard by a variety of college squads, and it appears Syracuse basketball is on this list.
To date, Jackson's only official visit has been to the Hill, and that trip transpired in late January of this year. The 6-foot-3 Jackson has also unofficially visited Auburn and Maryland, a hometown team.
Recent media reports and interviews given by Jackson suggest that he's mapping out other campus visits in the upcoming months, although for the time being, he seems to be focused on the current AAU season.
Jackson said in a recent interview with the X account SportsCenter NEXT that he's eyeing a college decision around the fall, so a lot can transpire in his recruiting process between now and then.
It's true that the Orange staff has offers out to several other guards in the 2025 cycle, but as far as I can tell, Jackson, a consensus top-60 national prospect, is a priority recruit for 'Cuse coaches.
Four-star point guard Tyler Jackson seems to be high on Syracuse basketball.
The Orange staff offered a scholarship to Jackson in late April of 2023. His offer sheet, according to recruiting services, includes other schools such as Auburn, Ole Miss, Indiana, Villanova, LSU, Old Dominion, Pittsburgh, Virginia Tech, California, Kansas, Alabama, Maryland, Illinois, Rutgers, Seton Hall, DePaul, George Mason, Georgia Tech, Rhode Island, Houston, Penn State, UCF, Mississippi State, Arizona State and Wake Forest.
Recruiting insider Sam Kayser, who runs the X account 24/7 High School Hoops, said in a social media post this past Friday that the programs in touch with Jackson the most these days are Syracuse basketball, Maryland, Indiana, Auburn, Ole Miss, Alabama, Virginia, LSU and Florida State.
Based on recent reports and interviews given by Jackson, some upcoming visit destinations for him could include Ole Miss, LSU, Maryland, Kansas and Florida State.
Kayser recently told Jackson Holzer, who hosts Locked On Syracuse, that while the Orange isn't necessarily the favorite per se for Tyler Jackson, the fact that Syracuse basketball was the first school he officially visited is an encouraging sign for the Orange's chances here.
In his recent chat with SportsCenter NEXT, Jackson noted that he talks to the Syracuse basketball staff "every day," and he mentioned two Orange coaches in particular, head coach Adrian Autry and assistant coach Brenden Straughn, both of whom have deep recruiting ties in the Baltimore to Washington, D.C., corridor.
As a sophomore, Jackson was a standout at the Saint Frances Academy in Baltimore. In the most recent 2023-24 campaign, as a junior, he played in the Atlanta-based professional league Overtime Elite. His OTE group, the City Reapers, won the Overtime Elite championship.
In the summer of 2023, Jackson helped guide the 16U squad of the Baltimore-based Team Thrill to a title in the Under Armour Association league ("UAA").
Last weekend in the Atlanta area, Jackson competed for the 17U unit of the Baltimore-based Team Melo in Nike's EYBL league. One of his teammates in this session was 2025 four-star shooting guard Kiyan Anthony from New York City, another priority recruit for Syracuse basketball in this cycle.
Jackson and Anthony are good friends. Jackson has also said on more than one occasion in interviews that he has a strong relationship with Anthony's father, 'Cuse legend Carmelo Anthony.
Within the 2025 class, numerous recruiting services rank Jackson as a top-35 overall player and a top-five point guard.
For what it's worth, On3's recruiting prediction machine currently has Syracuse basketball in the lead for Jackson, but that could shift as he takes more visits in the future. Still, it's excellent to hear that Orange coaches remain in frequent communication with this talented 2025 point guard.