Trent Jackson, possibly the greatest all-around athlete from Rochester, New York, died suddenly this past weekend. The ‘Franklin Flash’ ran a 9.4 100 yard sprint in 1961. Thus tying the national high school mark established by none other than Jesse Owens. Jackson later made the U.S. Olympic squad for the 1964 Tokyo games. An unfortunate injury in a preliminary race kept Jackson from winning a medal.
Jackson attended the University of Illinois with a football and track scholarship. He played at Illinois with Dick Butkus and helped the Illini to a victory in the 1964 Rose Bowl.
Jackson played briefly in the NFL with the Eagles and ‘Skins.
He retired in 2001 after coaching the Franklin Boys’ basketball team for twenty-six years.
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