COLUMBIA, S.C. – Benedict College has named Dannton Jackson as head men’s basketball coach, announced Dr. Roslyn C. Artis, President, and Willie Washington, Director of Athletics.
Jackson comes to Benedict from Talladega College, where he served as Head Basketball Coach and Deputy Athletic Director. The Tornados are coming off a 20-9 record this past season, beating Division I Alcorn State in an exhibition game, as well as beating both SIAC powerhouse Miles and LeMoyne-Owen. During the 2023-24 season, the Tornados went 22-7, including starting the season 15-1, and beating nine NCAA Division II teams. He was also named Hoop Dirt NAIA National Coach of the Week. In three seasons with Talladega, he guided the Tornados to a 54-33 record (.621).
“We are excited to bring such a talented coach with a rich history of success to lead the Benedict Tigers,” Washington said. “Coach Jackson is a Hall of Fame Coach who has a proven track record and possesses the experience, talent and determination to advance our basketball team to the next level. In addition to ensuring that his student-athletes excel on the basketball court, Coach Jackson has an unwavering commitment to helping players develop the discipline required to succeed academically and achieve both their professional and personal goals.”
“I’m truly blessed and excited to be here at Benedict College. This is a special place with a proud legacy, and I’m ready to get to work,” Jackson said. “My goal is to build a program that our students, alumni, and the entire Benedict family can be proud of. We’re going to compete, we’re going to grow as men, and we’re going to win the right way-together.”
Prior to joining Talladega, Jackson spent one season as an assistant coach at Division I University of Albany and four years as an assistant coach at the University of Alabama-Birmingham.
For more than a decade, Jackson transformed Xavier University of Louisiana’s men’s basketball program into a powerhouse. He compiled an impressive 294-130 career record (.693) over 13 seasons, solidifying him as XULA’s all-time winningest head coach in men’s basketball. Jackson was inducted in XULA’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 2024. His teams reached 20 victories 11 times, won five Gulf Coast Athletic Conference regular-season championships – three in a row from 2011-14 – and qualified for NAIA nationals 10 times, including each of his final six seasons. His Gold Rush averaged 22.6 victories per season. Additionally, he served two terms as athletic director at Xavier University, and was the first African-American to serve as the president of men’s basketball for the NAIA Division I and Division II.
His Xavier teams were ranked 93 times in the NAIA Division I Coaches’ Top 25 Poll, which includes 68 appearances in 69 polls from Oct. 25, 2010-Jan. 19, 2016. Jackson was tabbed the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Coach of the Year from 2012-14, and is the only coach to win the award in three consecutive seasons. He was also a court coach for the 2012 USA Basketball Men’s U18 National Team.
Jackson is a Los Angeles native whose basketball journey began at Xavier University Louisiana, where he played on the men’s team before earning his bachelor of arts degree in political science and later a master of arts in education administration in 1996.
Jackson made his transition into coaching full-time at his alma mater, after landing his first job as an assistant women’s basketball coach, given to him by longtime mentor and late friend, Janice Joseph-Richard. As he continued gaining momentum at the institution, Coach Jackson went on to juggle many hats in Xavier University’s sphere of sports, including head men’s and women’s cross country coach, assistant men’s basketball coach, and then associate basketball coach under another mentor, Dale Valdery. His dedication and ability to develop players quickly became apparent, earning him a promotion to head coach in 2002.
Jackson boasts multiple players under his wing who went on to pursue head coaching careers of their own, including fellow 2024 XULA Hall of Fame inductee Shaun Dumas (Crescent City Christian School), as well as Landon Bussie at Alcorn State, among others. Not only that, Jackson has coached one of the nation’s top AAU basketball teams and has mentored more than eight NBA players throughout his decorated career.
Source: Benedict College Athletics
