UI pair Hatten, Jackson know their worth
Jul. 26—An undersized wide receiver from College of San Mateo Junior College and a converted tight end were selected as the Big Sky's preseason all-conference pass catchers.
Idaho's Jermaine Jackson and Hayden Hatten are now clear of their negative recruiting marks following an electric 2022 season in which they both had over 1,000 receiving yards.
Coming off such a season in today's college football landscape with the transfer portal and players having an opportunity to profit off of their name, image and likeness, Hatten and Jackson could've looked to play elsewhere. But neither Jackson nor Hatten has forgotten how things started out for them.
"These schools didn't want us back then, so why would we want to go to them now?" Jackson said. "Everyone wants to go play big, but you should've taken the opportunity on us out of high school or out of juco. We'll stay where we're at."
It came as no surprise that other teams did reach out to both players following the end of the season. But according to Hatten, they never stood a chance.
"I know deep down that there's not a monetary value that can replace the amount of love that the Vandals have shown me," he said. "I can't wait to have a family and take them back and show them the Kibbie Dome."
Both Hatten and Jackson have had a unique journey to becoming the class of the Big Sky, with Hatten originally having aspirations of playing for Northern Arizona, having gone on five visits to the Flagstaff-based university.
The Lumberjacks ended up passing on Idaho's single-season touchdown reception leader — a chip that Hatten continues to wear on his shoulder.
"I have a big sense of pride in being a Vandal," Hatten said. "It's something that I will never take for granted. I'm very thankful to say I wore the black and gold and got to play in the Kibbe Dome."
Jackson also wasn't highly recruited out of high school because he was undersized. This caused him to take the junior college route to Division I football.
The Oakland native admits juco helped mold him into the man that he is today, but it did come with some adversity — including sharing a three-bedroom house with 11 of his teammates.
Throughout his time with the Bulldogs, he built strong relationships with his teammates and his former coach, Tim Tulloch.
Tulloch and Jackson remain in contact, with the head man of San Mateo instilling the 'chop wood and carry water' mentality, which basically means to always keep working.
"I'll never forget where I came from," Jackson said. "I always have a chip on my shoulder. I've been doubted my whole life, literally my whole life. I love proving people wrong; that feeling is better than scoring a touchdown."
The senior played two years for San Mateo, earning first-team all-state honors as a receiver and a returner in 2019. In his sophomore year, he had 622 receiving yards and five touchdowns.
Despite his success, Jackson only had offers from Western Illinois and Idaho coming out of California. He elected to sign with Idaho, citing that the competition in the Big Sky is the best in the Football Championship Subdivision.
Once the pair got started, they were both almost immediately hit with substantial injuries.
Hatten made the transition to receiver during the shortened spring season in 2021, finishing with 43 receptions for 613 yards.
This was a glimpse into what the 6-foot-2, 205-pounder could do, but as he himself admitted the spring season was taken with a grain of salt. During the fall season, he suffered a back injury that kept him out for most of the season.
"It was easy to scratch my name off the list when I wasn't playing, and I'm OK with that," Hatten said. "It puts another chip on my shoulder to go out and prove to everyone what I can do."
When Hatten had a successful spring season, it was Jackson's first season on campus. The 5-foot-7 receiver sustained a torn ACL during the first game of the season against Eastern Washington on Feb. 27, 2021.
From there, he redshirted in the 2021 fall season, which was followed by his breakout season that included 54 receptions and 1,049 yards last year.
"You have to treat your body like a temple," Jackson said. "That's the biggest thing and I've really been trying to preach that to my teammates. You have to do your best to try and stay healthy."
Jackson and Hatten's similar paths while playing the same position have drawn the pair closer together. But the final piece as to why the pair is coming back is quarterback Gevani McCoy.
The Jerry Rice award-winning quarterback was sitting on the bench most of the 2021 season as a redshirt freshman, spending a lot of time on the sidelines with the injured Hatten and redshirted Jackson.
This is where the trio began to form a bond, which a year later would help propel Idaho's offense to new heights.
"We talk about this every day," Jackson said. "I'm not going to lie, those two (McCoy and Hatten) were a big reason I stayed. The transfer portal always goes through your mind a couple of times, but there's no way I'm going to leave those two.
"We can build something special here, and I feel like It's going to happen, and we could be a big part of it."
Pixley may be contacted at (208) 848-2290, tpixley@lmtribune.com or on Twitter @TreebTalks.
