Former FVSU head men's basketball coach Jackson found dead in Atlanta, apparent victim of carjacking

By Michael A. Lough

The Sports Report

centralgasports@gmail.com

          Reported missing since Monday, former Fort Valley State head men’s basketball coach Sammy Jackson was found dead Wednesday afternoon in Atlanta.

          Jackson was last seen at a Dollar General on Russell Parkaway in Warner Robins on Sunday night, and reported missing on Monday by his wife Jill. He was working part-time as an Uber driver, according to media reports, and Jill Jackson had last spoken to him Sunday night prior to his Uber shift.

          That vehicle was located, through BMW,  at an apartment complex in Bonaire, before Jackson was found, an apparent carjacking visit. Pictures of Jackson at Dollar General at the start of his shift were posted on Facebook. Jackson’s wife received a text message from his phone asking for his Social Security number, an unusual inquiry.

          His sister Barbara posted, in part: “…Our Hearts are so Heavy….Why didn’t u just take the car & go why did u have to shoot & kill him he would have given you that car because material things never mattered to him…He had a Heart of GOLD & would have helped anybody in the world….Our love 1 is gone & we are not ready to except it..please pray for our family (GA & AL) cause this is going to be a hard 1.”

          There has been no official cause of death released as of Wednesday night. The Dothan Eagle reported that Jackson’s brother Franklin Williams said a suspect was in custody.

          Jackson was the Wildcats’ head coach from 2011-18, resigning for family issues.

          Jackson had also coached at Alabama A&M, Alabama, Savannah State, Georgia Southern, and Tennessee State. He was a standout high school player near Dothan, Ala., and played at the University of Montevallo in the 1980s.

          The 59-year-old father of three was an employee of the Bibb County School District, according to some social media posts, as a teacher and coach t Howard Middle School..

          Friends and family in Georgia and Alabama mourned him online as “The most humble guy to know with a heart of gold” and “Sammy Jackson spent his whole life helping people! Always giving and helping others” and “I never saw him when he wasn’t smiling.”

Sources: WMGT/41NBC, AL.com, Dothan Eagle