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Jackson has a busy slate ahead

Albert Jackson has been a busy guy. The 6-foot-10, 240-pound center from Hopkinsville, Kentucky Hopkins Co. High School is in the middle of a busy season and he's trying to go through the recruiting process by accumulating as much knowledge as he can. Jackson recently took an official visit and has plans to visit two SEC schools and a major Big Ten program.
Jackson is preparing for a "statement game" as he puts it on Thursday against Henderson Co. High School. Jackson is a defensive stopper for Hopkins Co. (15-11) and he's being wooed by some of the top programs east of the Mississippi River.
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Jackson officially visited Xavier at the beginning of the month. His time with the X-men was an eye-opener as far as official visits go.
"It went pretty good. I enjoyed it. It was pretty fun. They showed me around their campus and I liked what they had to say," Jackson said. "If all of the visits were like that, I think the rest of them should be pretty fun."
From there, Jackson was at the Vanderbilt-Tennessee game in Nashville. He also visited Illinois unofficially in the fall. More trips are coming.
"I have a lot of plans and I think my list is almost set," Jackson said.
His plans include more official visits in the spring. Jackson said Georgia will receive one. Kentucky is likely to get one, too. And Illinois made the cut but he said he won't visit them right away.
"I like Georgia. Coach (Dennis) Felton is a good guy and really laid back," Jackson said. "I like what he's had to say so far. I want to go down there and check them out and see what they have to say."
Getting to Kentucky hasn't been your normal route on the recruiting road. He's told Rivals.com in the past that he doesn't have any interest in the home-state school. But now that tune has changed.
"I thought they just didn't want to talk to me but I just found out that they had sent me letters my whole sophomore year. I just got the pile of letters the other day," Jackson said. "Because I didn't know, it was like a well if you don't want to talk to me, I don't know if I want to talk to you kind of situation to me. It was a communication breakdown because I just didn't see all of the stuff they sent."
And Illinois?
"They want me to come when I'm closer to making a decision because they said they want the visit fresh in my mind," Jackson said.
A good student with promising skills and a physique that can handle the rigors of playing major minutes in the paint, Jackson will be a guy coaches want to get in early with. And that's why he's visiting early and often. Jackson said he wants to engrain himself with as many schools as possible.
"I'll basically decide when I see this place and I'll just know it when I see it," Jackson said. "It's just that feeling."
Jackson said he's keeping his fifth official visit open. Tennessee could possibly receive it, he said. And Arizona, Georgia Tech and Wake Forest have also been sending mail to the big man.
He'll suit up for the Eddie Ford Hoopstars this AAU season.
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