Landon Jackson injury update: Sam Pittman provides latest after hospital visit

On Saturday, Arkansas defensive end Landon Jackson suffered an apparent head/neck injury in the second quarter against Missouri. After remaining on the ground for several minutes, Jackson was carted off the field and placed in an ambulance.

He was then transported to a hospital across the street from Memorial Stadium. After the game, Arkansas head coach Sam Pittman provided an update on Jackson’s condition.

“Landon Jackson is back in the locker room and doing well,” Pittman said. “He’s been released. So that was great news.”

Before leaving the game, Jackson recorded five tackles. The injury occurred when Jackson tackled Missouri running back Jamal Roberts. Jackson’s head appeared to whip backward during the impact before he crumbled to the ground.

The Razorbacks felt Jackson’s absence in the second half, ultimately falling 28-21 to Missouri. Jackson is Arkansas’ best pass rusher, leading the team with 6.5 sacks this season. He’s also tallied 49 tackles, three passes defended and one forced fumble.

During the game on Saturday evening, ESPN’s Alyssa Lang provided further details on Jackson’s injury.

“We saw Landon Jackson put onto the stretcher, put into the ambulance and taken across the street to MU hospital, which specializes in trauma level one,” Lang said. “As Arkansas’ team was coming off of the field, they were touching the side of that ambulance, patting the side to let their brother know that they were thinking about him.

“I talked to athletic director Hunter Yurachek. He said he has movement in his extremities. He was talking and the hospital visit is because he was feeling pain in his neck, using the word ‘precautionary’ to get all of that checked out. I talked to Sam Pittman about how he addressed the team in the middle of a very emotional moment in this tie ball game on the road in the SEC. He said, ‘I told them that Landon is talking, that he’s moving and that he’s going to be OK.'”

Landon Jackson has a bright future ahead of him. ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. listed Jackson as the No. 4 available defensive end in his latest 2024 NFL draft Big Board rankings. Arkansas has not provided any further information on Jackson’s status for the team’s impending bowl game.