Michigan State head women’s basketball coach Suzy Merchant has announced former Spartan Candice M. Jackson as the Director of Recruiting.
“We are thrilled to welcome Candice back to the Spartan family in an official capacity. She brings a wealth of experience in her new role as Director of Recruiting,” Merchant said. “She has established herself as a well-respected recruiter and contributor in our profession. Her connections, recruitment of student-athletes in multiple regions of the country, past recruiting coordinator roles, head coaching experience as well as her engaging personality will serve us well in this new role on staff. We are thrilled to welcome Candice back home.”
In her role as the Director of Recruiting, Jackson will oversee Michigan State’s recruiting efforts, including organizing the summer calendar, recruiting visits and travel.
“Being back at Michigan State is a full circle moment. There is something special about working for your alma mater and the program that had such an important role in shaping my career. Michigan State is a very special place, and as a Spartan we bleed green. Thank you to Coach Merchant for welcoming me home, and I cannot wait to get started,” Jackson said.
Jackson returns to East Lansing with a wealth of basketball experience, most recently as an assistant coach at Buffalo. She also spent five seasons as the head coach at the College of Charleston from 2014-2019. Jackson cultivated her recruiting experience with stops as an assistant coach in the ACC at Duke (2011-14) and Wake Forest (2009-11). Her first full-time assistant coaching position was at Richmond from 2005-09.
A four-year letterwinner at Michigan State from 2000-04. Jackson served as team captain during her junior and senior years and led the team to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances in 2003 and 2004.
She graduated from Michigan State, with a bachelor’s degree in family community service in 2004. She was graduate assistant coach for the 2004-05 squad that advanced all the way to the National Championship Game.
A native of Lansing, Michigan, Jackson was a three-time MVP at Lansing Everett High School, the same alma mater as Earvin “Magic” Johnson, and guided her team to the state title game as a senior.
CANDICE M. JACKSON’S COACHING EXPERIENCE
2004-2005 (One Season) – Graduate Assistant Coach, Michigan State
2005-2009 (Four Seasons) – Assistant Coach, Richmond
2009-2011 (Two Seasons) – Assistant Coach, Wake Forest
2011-2014 (Three Seasons) – Assistant Coach, Duke
2014-2019 (Five Seasons) – Head Coach, College of Charleston
2019-2020 (One Season) – Assistant Coach, Buffalo
