Jaxton Eck

Jaxton Eck (born December 30, 2004) is an American college football linebacker for the New Mexico Lobos. He previously played for the Idaho.

Early life Eck was born on December 30, 2004, in Moscow, Idaho, to Jason and Kimberly Eck. The family moved seven times from his birth to high school due to his father's job as a college football coach. Eck was often placed in older age groups while participating in youth sports so that he could play with his older brother Quentin. As a senior, Eck posted 136 tackles, 19 TFL, four forced fumbles, two sacks, two interceptions, and a defensive touchdown. and was named to the Argus Leader Elite 45, an all-star team of the best players in the state regardless of class. Eck signed with the Vandals in December.

College career Idaho Despite initially wanting to avoid the stigma that goes with being the "coach's kid", Eck changed his mind when his father was hired to coach at Idaho: "I thought it’d be cool to come back to where I was born," he said, adding that "having [his] family be able to come see [him] play also played a big role." Ahead of his first spring game in 2023, the Moscow-Pullman Daily News wrote: "His ability to read plays and shed blocks has been impressive — it’s almost like he’s a coach’s kid or something." Eck appeared in 12 games as a freshman, tallying 37 tackles and three tackles for loss (TFL). He stepped into a leadership role on the defense as the season progressed, according to his father. He started all 14 games on the season and logged a team-high 134 tackles, to go along with 3.5 TFL and an interception, and earned first-team all-Big Sky honors.

Eck entered the NCAA transfer portal following the conclusion of the season, just a few days after his father was hired as the head coach at New Mexico. He was rated as a three-star transfer recruit by 247Sports. Eck received offers from programs such as Michigan State, NC State, and Stanford. However, he had a strong performance in fall camp, securing a starting spot ahead of their season opener at Michigan. Eck was named the Mountain West Conference defensive player of the week in mid-September after he posted a game-high 11 tackles, forced a fumble, and deflected a pass that led to an interception to seal a 35–10 win at UCLA, which marked the Lobos' first Power Conference win in 17 years. The following week, he recorded his first career sack in a 38–20 victory over New Mexico State in the 115th annual Rio Grande Rivalry game. In his next game, Eck tallied a career-high 18 tackles in a 41–25 loss to Boise State. He helped the Lobos earn a bid to the 2025 Rate Bowl and finished the season with a team-high 129 tackles to go along with 6.5 TFL and 1.5 sacks in 13 starts.

Eck re-signed with New Mexico for the 2026 season.

Personal life Eck has four siblings: Quintin, Palmer, Maverick, and Lola. He was named a first-team academic All-American by the Collegiate Sports Communicators while at New Mexico.