After seeing how Jordan Lesley handled last season’s coaching staff shuffle, West Virginia head football coach Neal Brown knew he had to make a change.

No, Lesley didn’t do anything necessarily bad — after all, he did serve as co-defensive coordinator for a unit that, at times, was ranked the No. 1 defense in all of college football — but, as he handled both the tasks of co-defensive coordinator and defensive line coach, it took its toll.

“It was important for me during this transition to get a defensive line coach, because Jordan wore both hats last year calling defense and coaching the defensive line,” Brown said. “I just think that’s a lot.”

Entering this season, Brown knew coaching assignment adjustments were necessary. Lesley remained as co-defensive coordinator, instead shifting his positional assignment to outside linebackers, leaving the defensive line job vacant.

Enter Andrew Jackson.

Jackson, or “AJ” as he goes by, comes to WVU having served as the defensive line coach at Old Dominion in 2020.

“Having worked with Blake Seiler at Old Dominion last season, and getting a chance to hear about the great things inside this program...being at Mississippi State the same time when coach (Neal) Brown was down at Troy (and) kind of seeing the success at that program, as well as being on the field with these guys in 2019 when I was at James Madison,” Jackson said. “I feel like this was a place that was on the rise, the up and up.”

Brown says that, as the team moves toward an emphasis in recruiting in the New York/New Jersey area, Jackson’s background as a native of the region, as well as his reputation, were driving factors in his hiring.

“A lot of guys that I know and have a lot of respect for and I’m close with spoke really highly of him, not only as a teacher but as somebody who can develop players,” Brown said. “Great staff guy. Where he’s recruited and where he’s from I thought was a really good match for us.”

On the field, Jackson has been in the college game since 2007, leaving out a few years.

As a defensive lineman, he played at LIU-Post from 2007-11, and joined the school’s coaching staff as a graduate assistant in 2013. He’s since bounced around to a handful of positions on the defensive side of the ball, including Penn State (GA, 2015-16), Mississippi State (defensive quality control, 2018) and James Madison (defensive tackles, 2019).

Off the field, Jackson will primarily focus on recruiting on the east coast. His coverage territory includes Washington, D.C., central New Jersey, north New York City, the top northeast corner of Pennsylvania and the I-95 south corridor through Richmond, Virginia.

“I’m a relationships guy,” Jackson said. “I believe that you’ve kind of got to connect with the high school coaches, connect with the kids and the 7-on-7 coaches to kind of build your rapport through those guys. Kids have to believe that you can make them a better man and a batter player, so it’s all about relationships for me.”

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