Lisa Jackson blends in quite well on the tennis court.With her dirty blond hair pulled back in a ponytail and sunglasses masking her hazel eyes, the fourth-year LSU women’s assistant tennis coach could be mistaken for one of her own players. The 31-year-old has become an instrumental part in the Lady Tigers’ resurgence as a top-25 team in the country. “She’s a good hustler and a good example for the girls because she has such a great work ethic and attitude that I think rubs off on them,” said LSU women’s coach Tony Minnis. Jackson came to LSU in 2006, after a brief stint 50 miles down Interstate 12 at Louisiana-Lafayette.With the help of Minnis, Jackson corralled the No. 17 recruiting class in the country in 2006, signing four-star recruit Hannah Robinson and five-star prospect Nicole Kantor. Minnis said Jackson has a natural ability to evaluate talent. “She’s great at spotting talent … and keeping in touch [with recruits],” he said. When Jackson isn’t scouring the world for talent, she handles the conditioning program for the team and can regularly be seen on the courts at sunrise.
“She really emphasizes fitness,” Kantor said, speaking of the team’s 6 a.m. workouts Jackson orchestrates. “She really cares a lot about how we do, and she’s always there for us if we want to practice extra.”Jackson started her college playing career at the small NAIA school William Carey College before transferring to Texas-Arlington.  As a coach, she is known for her hands-on teaching approach and is not afraid to pick up a racket. “I really enjoy getting out there and hitting with them,” said the two-time Southland Conference Player of the Year. “It helps me understand their game and … it builds team chemistry, not only with them, but the coaches as well.”Kantor said it’s a relief to have Jackson practice with the team because Minnis covers the technical and strategic aspects of the game.”It’s always nice to have a coach who is doing the same thing you are, so it’s easier for her to relate to us,” Kantor said. Jackson hails from Johannesburg, South Africa, where she lived for 18 years before moving to Gulfport, Miss., to play at William Carey. After she became a graduate assistant at Texas-Arlington, she landed in Lafayette as associate head coach at ULL.Jackson helped lead the Ragin’ Cajuns in 2006 to their first winning season in four years. “She pretty much ran the program at UL, and one of the reasons I hired her was because she did such a good job there,” Minnis said. Jackson has family in Johannesburg and tries to make the near 9,000-mile trip once a year.She said the move to the U.S. went pretty smoothly, despite being so far away.”[The culture between Louisiana and Johannesburg] it’s pretty similar,” said Jackson, who was the 2007 Southwest Regional Assistant Coach of the Year. “People are really nice, easy going, polite and just are really good people. That’s why I like it so much here.”Jackson has no plans to leave LSU in the foreseeable future but would like to someday become a head coach.She had a taste of that last weekend when she coached the Lady Tigers in the Southeastern Conference Fall Classic while Minnis was in New York for the U.S. Open.Minnis said several schools have contacted him in the past few years about Jackson and sees her getting an opportunity to become a head coach in “the next couple years.””She’s played a pivotal role in every aspect of this program,” Minnis said. “Whatever needs to be done, she’s out there to do it.”—-Contact Sean Isabella at [email protected]