Pitt BB Recruiting
Pitt/Jeff Capel Offer No. 1 Junior in PA
After offering two huge recruits over the weekend, Pitt continued with his in-state recruiting by offering a 4-star forward.
Over the last month, Pitt has personally visited, scouted in-person and really kept in contact with junior small forward Sammy Jackson and yesterday it culminated with an offer.
Jackson is a 6-foot-7 4-star forward from Roman Catholic High School in Philadelphia. 247 Sports rates Jackson as the No. 1 junior prospect in Pennsylvania, he’s also rated as the No. 96 overall prospect in the Class of 2026.
Along with Pitt, Jackson (6’7″, 185-pounds) holds offers from Texas, Indiana, Arizona State, Auburn, LaSalle, Penn State, Villanova, Saint Joseph’s and Vanderbilt.
Jeff Capel and Pitt scouted Jackson at a recent tournament in Memphis and Pitt made an in-person visit to Roman Catholic to meet and talk with Jackson in person.
Top Performers from the Nike EYBL in Memphis🏀
(via @JamieShaw5)
Read: https://t.co/dnwgdBKtp9 pic.twitter.com/yCExU6p2Xm
— On3 Recruits (@On3Recruits) May 19, 2025
Playing for a talented roster in high school, Jackson averaged 14 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists per game last season.
“I feel like I’m building a good relationship with a lot of schools, not really singling it down to anything,” Jackson said. “The biggest thing for every school is I’m a guard, and they’re going to play me as a guard: point guard, shooting guard, but a guard in college. Not a power forward, not a 5, none of that.”
Even as a 6-foot-7 high school junior, Jackson already possesses strong handles for his size, giving him the kind of versatility that will help him stand out in an era of positionless basketball.
Jackson highlighted his offensive ability as one of his biggest strengths and said that college teams want him to bulk up his 185-pound frame. He himself wants to work on his defense ahead of his senior season.
2026 6’7 Combo @sjacks30 out of Roman Catholic HS is playing with Team Final on the EYBL circuit.
Was just offered by Texas.
The 6’7 Combo is a dynamic 3 level scorer with great size, elite length, and craft. Good fluent athlete; moves very fluently. Great pace to his game.… pic.twitter.com/v4TvCHHeVk
— Austin Mick (@coachmick_) May 6, 2025
“Definitely my ball handling at my size isn’t as common, isn’t very common at all across people who play this game at my age. Me being able to play point guard or handle the ball for a team the whole game is very rare. I feel like my shooting ability is good too, being able to create off the dribble, catch and shoot, and get to the basket if it’s needed,” Jackson said.
“One of the things they’ve (college coaches) asked me to do is just keep getting bigger. I feel like I have the IQ and knowledge of the game to be able to succeed, just getting bigger, stronger at the next level where there’s a different level of physicality.”
