Jackson named Offensive Player of the Year
Thursday July 10, 2008
The Philadelphia Soul receiver Chris Jackson was announced as the AFL Offensive Player of the Year for 2008 on Thursday.
PHILADELPHIA (Thursday, July 10) – Philadelphia Soul wide receiver Chris Jackson was named the AFL’s Offensive Player of the Year for 2008 on Thursday as voted by AFL head coaches, players, fans, and the Arena Football Writers Association.
The award marked the first time in franchise history that a Soul player was named as Offensive Player of the Year. This was Chris Jackson’s second time being named as Offensive Player of the Year, the first being in 2003 as a member of the Los Angeles Avengers.
Jackson, in his first year with the Soul, ended the year with the most first downs (111) and receiving touchdowns (49) in the league. He also finished second in the league in receptions (140), receiving yards (1,719), total touchdowns (49), and points (294).
“This is a tremendous individual award,” Jackson said. “However, I couldn’t have done it without my teammates and we have a bigger goal in mind in winning the ArenaBowl and that’s where my focus is right now.”
Jackson was also named All-Arena First-Team for the second consecutive season this season and third time in his career. Jackson was also named the AFL Co-Offensive Player of the Week for his performance at Los Angeles in Week 4. He later earned Offensive Player of the Month honors for the month of March.
Jackson also rocketed up the AFL’s all-time charts this season. He became the third player in AFL history to score 300 career touchdowns, ending the season in second place all-time with 318, and became the third player to score 2,000 career points. He is tied for second place in all-time receptions with 991 and in sole possession of second in career yards with 13,229.
The Soul are celebrating their fifth anniversary this season. Following last season, the Soul were recognized with the Commissioner's Award as the Organization of the Year and were an honorable mention for the PRISM Award in the category of fan appreciation. The Soul have drawn a total of 131,817 fans this season, their largest number since their inaugural season of 2004. The Soul sold out four games in the 2008 season and averaged a crowd of 16,477 fans per game. Since their inception, the Soul have drawn a total of 646,043 fans, the most in the AFL over that time frame. Soul 2008 playoff tickets are now on sale. For more playoff ticket information call (888) PHIL-AFL or log on to www.philadelphiasoul.com.