New commit Kendall Jackson was 'real close' with uncle, Florida Gators great Aubrey Hill
When Florida needed a third-down conversion in the early 1990s, the pass often went to Aubrey Hill, the late uncle of edge Kendall Jackson, the Gators’ newest commitment.
Hill wasn’t big. He wasn’t Florida’s fastest receiver. But he knew how to get open and man, did he have sure hands. He finished his career in Gainesville with 86 receptions for 1,439 yards and 18 touchdowns.
“People tell me he was a great player,” Jackson told Gators Online this spring “He always got after it. Apparently, he was that dude. Third down, if they needed a catch they hit him up.”
Hill, who helped the Gators win three SEC titles, later became a coach, at both the high school and college levels. In fact, he was Florida’s receivers coach for a stint a decade ago.
Hill passed away in 2020 after a lengthy cancer-related illness at age 48.
“We were real close,” Jackson said. “Every time I got to see him, me and him would chill all the time in Miami or wherever he was coaching before then. He was a great uncle. Loving uncle. He always cared for his family no matter what.”
Today, Jackson is a 4-star prospect from Gainesville (Fla.) Buchholz. He’s the No. 56 recruit in the state of Florida for the On3 Industry Ranking. Last year, he helped Buchholz reach the state semifinals for the second straight season.
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Wednesday, Jackson committed to Florida over Kentucky and Miami. The Wildcats were second.
More than one Jackson family member attended Florida
Unlike Hill, Jackson has typically been a player in the trenches. Most of the time anyway.
“I was always bigger than most people,” he said. “I didn’t play receiver, but I did play a little running back.”
Hill isn’t Jackson’s only relative to attend Florida. So did his mother. And his aunt.
“(His mother) was super excited the first time I told her (he had picked the Gators),” Jackson said. “She was never going to push me to do something I didn’t want to do. That’s why I really love my mom.”
Sadly, Hill never got to see his nephew develop into a major college prospect. But he no doubt would be a happy Gator on Wednesday.
“He was always pushing me to be great,” Jackson said. “And he said to just remember It was about relationships and to keep your head up.”
At Florida, Hill wore No. 82. Jackson told Gators Online he’d like to wear No. 8.
