Nadia Jackson is in her first season as the Illinois football program’s Director of Football Operations in 2026. Jackson joined the Illini from the Arizona Cardinals and has experience in college football at Kansas and Arkansas. 

Jackson spent the 2025 season as a football operations assistant with the Arizona Cardinals. She assisted with logistical aspects of team travel and off-site training camp including air and ground transportation, lodging, stadium mechanics, team food and beverage, communication to staff, and preparation of travel documents. Jackson also assisted with budget projections, reconciliation, and expense tracking, while providing support for Arizona’s personnel department events including the NFL Combine and NFL Draft and free agency visits.

Jackson was also a participant in the prestigious NFL Women’s Forum in 2025. 

Prior to her time in the NFL, Jackson spent two years with the Kansas football program, first as an Assistant Director of Football Operations before being promoted to Director of Internal Operations. She led the coordination and execution of special events including coaches clinics, ladies nights, staff outings, and program speakers, while overseeing all aspects of the team’s summer camps. Jackson also provided logistical support to the head coach and staff by overseeing scheduling meetings and appointments and coordinating travel.

Jackson graduated from the University of Kansas in 2022 with a bachelor’s degree in education in sports management. She worked as a football operations intern while a student at Kansas, before serving as a football operations intern at Temple during the spring of 2022.

Jackson enrolled at the University of Arkansas in the fall of 2022 and completed a master’s degree in the science of operations management in May 2024. While at Arkansas, she served as a graduate assistant in student-athlete development, supporting full-time staff with implementation of career development and community engagement programming.