WNBA star Rickea Jackson celebrates boyfriend's selection in first round of NFL Draft
WNBA star Rickea Jackson produced a heartwarming moment on Thursday as she celebrated her boyfriend becoming a
first-round pick
in the
2025 NFL Draft
.
Former
Tennessee Volunteers
linebacker James Pearce Jr. was made up after being selected as the No. 26 pick by the
Atlanta Falcons
to officially confirm the end of his
college football
career. The move, which cost a 2026 first-round pick for the Falcons after they traded back into the first round for Pearce, sparked a lot of excitement.
Atlanta's decision appears to be worth it, however, having paired Pearce with No. 15 pick Jalon Walker, who starred for the
Georgia Bulldogs
last term as
they reached the College Football Playoff quarter-finals
. The two new additions significantly improve the NFC South franchise's defense, which has become a bit of a problem area at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in recent years.
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Pearce, who boasts impressive speed and energy, will be looking to do his best to help Atlanta improve on its 8-9 record from last season, and his reaction to being selected by Raheem Morris' side certainly suggests he is willing to do all he can to repay their faith in opting for him.
In a clip shared by ESPN from its broadcast of Thursday's first round, Pearce is seen hugging and celebrating with his friends and family following the announcement. To his right, however, his girlfriend -
WNBA
superstar Jackson - is seen rubbing and tapping his leg in celebration as she smiles, before the former Tennessee star puts his arm around her.
Pearce's selection officially sees him wave goodbye to his three-year college career with Tennessee, where some of his highlights included playing in all 13 games as a freshman in 2022, producing five tackles and two sacks, before ranking third in the SEC for sacks and fifth in the SEC regarding tackles for loss after returning for his sophomore year in 2023.
As for Jackson, she is preparing to enter her second season in the WNBA with the
Los Angeles Sparks
after being selected as the fourth overall pick in the 2024 draft. During her debut campaign, the former Tennessee star played in all 40 regular-season games, starting 35, and averaged 13.4 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.5 assists.
She was also named to the 2024 WNBA All-Rookie Team, but her efforts were not enough to prevent
Los Angeles
falling to an 8–32 overall record, seeing them finish rock bottom of the league standings. Following the end of the campaign,
Jackson played in the inaugural season of Unrivaled
, a new women's 3-on-3
basketball
league founded by Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart.
As for the 24-year-old's romance with Pearce, neither of them are yet to confirm anything officially, although Thursday's clip of the two of them sat together during the
NFL
Draft was enough to convince fans that they must be an item. After the clip went viral, Jackson hilariously posted on X (formerly Twitter): 'Soooo I have a doppelganger. Wow."
Her post was met with some skepticism, although the majority took notice of the apparent humor in her message. Nonetheless, it appears that the rumors about a romance between them, which have swirled for more than a year now, are true, and would make perfect sense given both athletes attended the University of Tennessee.
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