Rakiyah Jackson '23 Recruiting Profile

Among my goals and aspirations are to be a highly successful basketball player and run my own company devoted to computer science and graphic design. ‌The fact that I can play every position effectively makes me an excellent candidate for your team. I'm a good rebounder, can defend any height or position, and won't back down from a challenge. ‌I am particularly adept at shooting from the mid-range, but I can also make perimeter shots at a high percentage, whether it is with a stop-and-pop, high post, coming off of a screen, or even just by being‌ ‌aggressive‌ ‌and‌ ‌attacking‌ ‌the‌ ‌basket.

In terms of basketball, I am not like the typical player, since I didn't play since I was very young and didn't watch the game as a kid. ‌While I was in elementary and middle schools, I was entirely focused on my academics, so I took math and science classes at the advanced level. ‌Because it forced me to learn something new and made me want to work even harder to master it, I wanted that challenge. I ‌focused all my efforts on getting a full-ride scholarship through academics. ‌In‌ ‌sixth grade, my mom called me at school to tell me she had arranged for me to have‌ ‌a‌ ‌basketball‌ trainer. In sixth grade, my mom called me at school to let me know she had arranged for me to have a basketball trainer. At first, I was skeptical because I didn't like basketball, largely due to the fact‌ ‌I‌ ‌didn't understand‌ ‌it. ‌Initially, I went to the training session just to please my mom, but afterward, I became amazed, it completely changed my view of‌ ‌the‌ ‌sport. ‌I can honestly say that playing for 6 years has challenged me physically and mentally more than anything else I have done. ‌

Every single day, I get up at 5 am to work out at 24-hour fitness, then I work out at the track from 12-1, then I work out in the gym from 3:30 to 6:45. And that is what took a lot of mental discipline, being able to wake up before the sun rises, pushing through my last rep on the weights, running every day to get my time down on my mile run, and even being confident enough in my skills to show to college coaches. Not a lot of people get the opportunities to play D1 let alone get a scholarship to college, but in my heart, I am confident that I am going to play D1 and pursue my career in computer science not just because of my parents but, because I worked hard to get to where I am today and I am going to continue until my goals and aspirations become my reality.