Steven Jackson’s Thoughts On Being Inducted Into The Oregon Sports Hall of Fame
Former Oregon State University football and St. Louis Rams running back Steven Jackson, who set school records in Corvallis and sits atop the Rams record books for his production on the football field, was inducted into the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame.
HomeBleachers had a chance to speak with the local legend, and he provided a ton of great insight into how he’s planning to approach his induction ceremony, how his religious faith guided him both during his football career and the time after it, his thoughts on not always being remembered among the greatest running backs in the history of the Rams franchise, and what he’s been doing in his life after the NFL.
This won’t be the first time that Jackson is inducted into a state’s sporting Hall of Fame. As a standout athlete growing up in Las Vegas, Nevada, Jackson was inducted into the Southern Nevada Sports Hall of Fame in 2011. But thanks to his school record with 2,015 all-purpose yards during his three years as a member of the Oregon State University Beavers, Jackson will have his name enshrined in another state’s sporting lore. Instead of focusing on preparing something in advance, that might not end up accurately portraying what Oregon State and the community surrounding it truly meant to him, Jackson plans – by his own admission – to deliver a non-rehearsed speech that’ll come straight from the heart. He’ll be doing so alongside an number of family, friends, and old teammates who’ll join him as he looks back on just how much it meant to him that Oregonians adopted him as one of their own.
In terms of other things that have deeply impacted his life, Jackson’s Christian faith has to be near the top of the list. It’s well-known among those in Oregon and those who were fans of Jackson during his time in St. Louis that he’s a deeply religious and devout individual. Jackson’s signature #39 jersey is in direct homage to the number of books in the Old Testament, and he’s not shy about revealing the fact that he believes that a person’s faith – regardless of their religious denomination – is a cornerstone for developing the mindset for becoming a better version of yourself and attracting positive-minded people into one’s life. For those who’d believe that it’s “taboo” to talk about religion, Jackson believes faith isn’t about preaching to others, but about having a conversation with your peers in a way that’s not adversarial, but about learning from each other so that we all can develop a sense of inner happiness and harmony as a whole.
It’s that mindset that allows Jackson to overlook any slights from sports fans who overlook him in the conversation of the best running backs in the recent era, or even the best running backs in Rams’ franchise history. Despite running for more yards than any other running back to ever put on the Rams uniform, Jackson often gets omitted in terms of the team’s best running back of all time, as others will immediately go to names like Marshall Faulk and/or Eric Dickerson. He doesn’t spend his days away from the gridiron worrying about where other people perceive him to be. Instead, he’s focusing on making the most of himself through things like real estate and small business opportunities, networking with like-minded folks, or simply reading and searching for any other opportunities that might interest him.
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