LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Lamar Jackson's NFL career has skyrocketed since his final game as a Louisville Cardinal in 2017. Now, the 2016 Heisman Trophy winner and two-time NFL MVP is getting into the horse racing industry.
Jackson, 27, is now the lead owner of the Maryland Colts, a new team in the National Thoroughbred League.
According to its website, the 10-team league takes a team-based approach to horse racing. Each competition consists of five races, with all 10 teams entering one athlete per roster into each race. The season kicks off Sunday, Sept. 1, with the NTL Nashville Cup, featuring more than $2 million in purses and a $1 million signature race.
The former Louisville and now Baltimore Ravens star quarterback is also launching a program to expose underprivileged children in Maryland to the horse racing industry, including an apprentice program offering mentorship from renowned trainer and multiple-time Preakness Stakes winner Chad Brown.
“I am truly excited to be a part of this great opportunity,” Jackson said in a release. "The core values of excellence, teamwork, community and leadership will help push the program beyond our expectations. I believe through our efforts and determination, more opportunities will be opened for the youth of the state of Maryland. We look forward to seeing the success of such a great vision become the reality.”
Jackson joins a star-studded list of partners, including basketball legend Julius Erving, country star Tanya Tucker, hip-hop icons Nelly and Rick Ross, New York Giants player Kayvon Thibodeaux and journalist Moira Forbes.
“Walk a racetrack with Lamar Jackson, and you’ll immediately understand his capacity to captivate an audience,” said Randall Lane, NTL co-founder. “And it’s that intimate connection and adrenaline that aligns so well with the underlying premise of the National Thoroughbred League. Our league exists to both honor the tradition of one of America’s oldest spectator sports, but also to embed another level of excitement into the sport so that it engages a broad audience and provides them with an exceptional experience."
During Jackson's Cardinal tenure from 2015 to 2017, he threw for 9,043 yards, 69 touchdowns and rushed for a school-record 4,132 yards and 50 touchdowns. Along with a Heisman, he won numerous other awards including the Maxwell Award (2016) Walter Camp Player of the Year (2016), The Associated Press Player of the Year (2016) and the ACC Player of the Year in both 2016 and 2017.
Entering his seventh NFL season, Jackson took home the NFL MVP after the 2019 and 2023 seasons, is a three-time Pro Bowl selection and is coming off an exceptional 2023 that saw him record 3,678 passing yards while leading the Ravens to a 13-3 record and the AFC Championship Game.
NTL is entering its second season and recently announced an expansion from six to 10 teams, with more than $3 million in prize purses for the 2024 season.
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