NG John Jenkins has ‘picked my school,’ will announce after night of prayer
National signing day was a huge day for thousands of prospects nationwide and millions of college football fans. But for John Jenkins it was pretty much a regular day in Perkinston, Miss.
“I was in class most of the day,” said Jenkins, the 6-foot-4, 340-pound junior college nose guard, who Georgia and half the Southeastern Conference still hopes to sign. “I got a chance to see a couple of people sign. I got to see the last of the Isaiah [Crowell] signing. That was pretty cool.”
What Jenkins did NOT think was so cool was what Crowell’s teammate Gabe Wright did immediately following Crowell’s announcement ESPNU. Wright wore an Auburn cap backward where a stitched-in message could be seen.
“I thought that was pretty bold of that defensive lineman to wear a hat that says ‘Nick Who?,’ said Jenkins, who, ironically, could not recall Wright’s name. “I was talking to my Pops and everybody and we were like, ‘Man, that was kind of bold of that kid.’ Nick Fairley is going to be like No. 1 or No. 2 overall [in the NFL draft], right? For a freshman to come out and say that was kind of bold. But that’s just my opinion.”
Auburn, as it turns out, is one of Jenkins’ finalists. So are the Bulldogs, Florida and Miami. They beat out Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Alabama, Arkansas, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech and many others to make Jenkins’ final cut. At one time Jenkins was committed to Oklahoma State.
Jenkins, the No. 6 junior college prospect in America, according to Rivals.com, could have gone ahead and made his announcement on Wednesday, too. He already knows where he’s going to sign. But he wanted to return to his roots to do it. He will unveil his decision at 1 p.m. during an ceremony at his alma mater, Maloney High, in Meriden, Conn.
“At this point I feel like I have decided; I’ve picked my school,” said Jenkins, shortly after getting out of class at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College on Friday. “But I’m just gonna get in one last prayer tonight before I go to sleep before tomorrow. I’ll just pray that I’m making the right decision, which I believe I am, and just go with it after that.”
Jenkins declined to provide any kind of hints as to what his final decision will be. He said recruiting has been an enjoyable experience and that he could not have gone wrong no matter which way he decided to go.
Asked if Georgia fans should closely follow his announcement, Jenkins laughed.
“I don’t see why not,” he said. “They’ve been keeping up so far.”
By Chip Towers, The College Recruiting Blog
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419 comments Add your comment
Monger
February 4th, 2011
5:22 pm
Dawg4ever, dont forget about Kent Turene at ILB, but I think Jarvis Jones is going into BEAST Mode sTRAIGHT BEAST MODE SON!!!!!!!!!! Like thomas tha “train” davis was at safety or even like a rennie curran type linebacker. Think dominate tackling and all around ballin!!! Also think teamed with Ray Drew on the outside and Richard Samuel and Kent Turene/Christian Robinson- then throw in some Marcus Dowtin to drop tha hammer, thors hammer, its over SON!!!!!!
dawgster
February 4th, 2011
5:23 pm
@Dawgster…thanks, i don’t have a patent on this handle, and i don;t capitilize the “d”..i did have someone a while back post some things that were inappropriate, even for a blog, but i have used this blog name for awhile, but if you want to use it with the capital “D”, then that would be fine…It may get confusing at times…some ideas to throw out to you could be adding some numbers at the end or other…the other guy that was purposely using others names and posting some absurd comments…go dawgs…
Nick Fairley Will Haunt Your Dreams Forever
February 4th, 2011
5:24 pm
Three months later and disgruntled Dawg fans are still whining about Fairley?
honolulu dawg
February 4th, 2011
5:27 pm
18 of 21,
Let me get this right, So Muschamp is a winner? He’s a dawg… Muschamp is just gonna lead drag the Gators to its knees. BTW, you are on your way to being 2nd or 3rd best in your state again.
Monger
February 4th, 2011
5:29 pm
also, we’ve got some ballers at olb in cornelius washington and this kid tj stripling, who was like a 4 star recruit last year. Plus I am interested to see what kind of impact some of these freshman linebackers can have in the future, seems like we got some good linebackers in this recruiting class. Much respect. When we get BIG JOHN JENKINS tommorrow, we can rotate him and Kwame at N, and have big DE like DeAngelo Tyson, Chris Mayes, Abry Jones, Mike Thornton, and Garrison Smith go to work, and then Ray Drew and Jarvis Jones come in for the bone crushing hits…thats what im talking about. Factor in Ogletree and Rambo, and Boykin and Smith and this is a scary good defense in a hurry.
1eyedJack
February 4th, 2011
5:29 pm
It’s time to give up the idea of breeding a all-white ancestor of the Original.
Next up let’s get us a bulldog with a brown ring around one eye like Petey on the Little Rascals. Or Crowell’s puppy would do. He looked like a DGD.
AltamahaDawg
February 4th, 2011
5:29 pm
Well that sux. Bruce was a good looking Dawg.
1eyedJack
February 4th, 2011
5:31 pm
Monger, Dowtin will be getting “0″ playing time at Georgia this year.
Michael
February 4th, 2011
5:33 pm
So the JUCO guys also have to sign letters of intent? So non-qualifiers still have to deal with arcane NCAA rules after they’ve gone the JUCO route.
Susan
February 4th, 2011
5:36 pm
RAID I heard that CNN and Fox News would both have his announcement on live TV.
AltamahaDawg
February 4th, 2011
5:36 pm
Naw, I’ve got some friends who breed pure white Bulldogs and they have not had any (out of the ordinary for that breed) health issues with thiers.
I wouldn’t mind if Sonny just told everyone it was UGA bloodline and gets the best dog he can find though.
Real Problem
February 4th, 2011
5:38 pm
Monger…..I for one think Georgia will have a Real Problem in the secondary until we get Mithcell and Swain in the lineup. Ogletree and Rambo start and we might just be looking for a new coach next year. I would rather roll the dice with true freshmen.
AltamahaDawg
February 4th, 2011
5:45 pm
Interesting piece on (4 star DE) Sterling Bailey out in the blogosphere. Would have been just as big of a deal as Ray Drew, or Jay Rome had he not committed so early. Could play a very big LB if he needed to, pass rushing appetite. Probably RS to fill out some more though.
Vance Duly
February 4th, 2011
5:48 pm
Vasi “Tombstone” Papulu (6′7 380) is rumored to be making his announcement on Monday, choosing between UCLA, Georgia, Texas, Oklahoma, Texas Tech, Auburn, Alabama, USC, Oregon, Central Florida, Ohio State, Univ. of Guam (UG) – (FBS.5), Clemson and Tennessee. Via ham radio from Pago Pago.
AltamahaDawg
February 4th, 2011
5:49 pm
You would rather play a true freshman than Ogletree? why?
This is probably the most stable D backfield we have had in years.
RiffRaff
February 4th, 2011
5:51 pm
Jenkins will be a Dawg. Just ask Ray Drew.
Billy Jack
February 4th, 2011
5:52 pm
Vasi isn’t Mormon.??…many Pacific Island countries have a large Mormon population..BYU isn’t on the list though…hmmmm..I say he picks UCLA
Vance Duly
February 4th, 2011
6:06 pm
Vasi was a Mormon, but found the linen underwear to be a bit restrictive for a 380-pounder, so he’s a Methodist now. That ruled BYU out early in the process, plus he didn’t like BYU changing conferences. He had been interested in the Big 10 briefly, until hearing about the “Legends” and “Leaders” divisions. I don’t have a ham radio, so I’m not sure how to tune in to his announcement.
Sully
February 4th, 2011
6:07 pm
OK CMR, top facilities, top pay, “dream team”, no more excuses if no NC in 2 yrs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Paul N Destin
February 4th, 2011
6:10 pm
UGA don’t count out the ghetto twins at Auburn for Jenkins. Auburn and all the trash involved in that program will ruin college football in the SEC within 2 years. The good news is the way they have recruited and the method will be documented well in the coming weeks.The deal on Cyrus will show you how they people operate. The guys behind the curtain pulling the strings. The HS coaches that are on the take. It stinks but it will be exposed real soon. Sad.
1eyedJack
February 4th, 2011
6:11 pm
Mormon? You don’t see many Mormans that size riding their bicycles down the street. Especially not around here. Too hot.
tony
February 4th, 2011
6:11 pm
DeAngelo Tyson 6′2 292lbs is too small? I don’t think so.
The Dawgs DL:
DE-Abry Jones 6′3 295lbs…………4 star
NT-DeAngelo Tyson 6′2 292lbs…..4 star
DE-Demarcus Dobbs 6′2 274lbs….3 star
OLB-Justin Houston 6′3 364lbs……4 star
Oregon Ducks DL:
DE-Terrell Turner 6′3 261lbs……….3 star
DT-Brandon Bair 6′7 272lbs………..2 star
DT-Zac Clark 6′2 270lbs…………….3 star
DE-Kenny Rowe 6′3 232lbs………..4 star
Size doesn’t matter as the Ducks demonstrated this pass season. The Ducks DL was strong, mean and relentless. Our young men can’t play mean smash mouth football because they have to respect their hc religious principles.
MarineDawg
February 4th, 2011
6:11 pm
ESPN is reporting the following candidates as possible OL coaching hires, It goes on to say that Fridge is not a candidate. Not sure how accurate this is, but I found it on ESPN.
Greg Adkins:
Adkins, who just finished his second season as Syracuse’s offensive line coach, was a member of former Georgia coach Jim Donnan’s staff from 1996 to 2000. Adkins also coached offensive lines at Marshall, Troy and Tennessee. He is regarded among the best recruiters in the country, helping sign future NFL players DeMarcus Ware at Troy, Boss and Champ Bailey and Will Witherspoon at Georgia and Erik Ainge at Tennessee.
Will Friend:
Friend, a four-year starting guard at Alabama from 1993-96, just finished his fourth season as UAB’s offensive line coach. Friend was hired at UAB by former Georgia offensive line coach Neil Callaway. A native of Philadelphia, Miss., Friend also coached the offensive line at Gardner-Webb in North Carolina. Under Friend’s direction, the Blazers ranked 15th nationally in sacks allowed, giving up only 12 in 12 games.
Brent Key:
Key, a former starting guard at Georgia Tech from 1997-2000, has worked the past six seasons for George O’Leary at Central Florida. A native of Trussville, Ala., Key worked the past two seasons as the Knights’ offensive line coach and the previous four as tight ends coach and special teams coordinator. UCF finished 10-3 in 2010, beating Georgia 10-6 in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl.
Mac McWhorter:
A 1974 graduate of Georgia, McWhorter spent the past nine seasons as Texas’ offensive line coach. He was one of four assistants not retained by Texas coach Mack Brown after the Longhorns finished 5-7 in 2010. McWhorter worked on Ray Goff’s UGA staff from 1991-95 and also was interim head coach at Georgia Tech in 2001. McWhorter has more than 35 years of coaching experience and also worked at Memphis, Clemson, Duke and Alabama.
http://espn.go.com/blog/sec/post/_/id/19762/richt-hopes-to-hire-ol-coach-soon
freelemur
February 4th, 2011
6:14 pm
Any incoming freshman could start for UGA outside of the QB position. They are pretty weak across the board.
Josh Smith For 3
February 4th, 2011
6:21 pm
Greg Adkins or Will Friend for O-line coach. Considering how well UGA performed with Neil Callaway on the staff, I think Friend might be a great fit.
As a JUCO, how long would Jenkins be eligible to play?
BOBO the Clown
February 4th, 2011
6:22 pm
Go ahead and announce what school you are going to pick already. These punks make me sick. And if he picks UGA he better do some praying.
1eyedJack
February 4th, 2011
6:23 pm
Georgia will probably start the season with 17 or 18 Juniors and Seniors starting. That should be solid. With a new attitude, and more muscle and stamina, that should be worth 10+ wins.
BOBO the Clown
February 4th, 2011
6:25 pm
OLB-Justin Houston 6′3 364lbs. Bull, there are no OLB that weigh 364lbs.
Paul
February 4th, 2011
6:28 pm
Not only do we want you to be a Dawg, we need you.
Billy Jack @ 1eyedJack
February 4th, 2011
6:29 pm
if you weigh over 300lbs and play for BYU there is a special “exemption” on the 2 yr mission requirment…the NCAA is currently investigating….
RabidDawgFan
February 4th, 2011
6:32 pm
No doubt he’s coming to UGA. He knows that he’ll be an immediate starter and he also knows how much we need him here and how big of an impact he’ll make. What other teams that are recruiting him run a 3-4? We have so much potential on defense this season. I’d rather have a stout defense that limits the offense from scoring than an offense that puts up 40 PPG. When I go to G-Day, I want to see our defense play lights out instead of our offense putting up tons of points. The defense better win the day at G-Day or I’m worried.
AltamahaDawg
February 4th, 2011
6:33 pm
Does anyone know if he got to go fishing with Richt when he was in Athens? That seems to be the deal maker.
tony
February 4th, 2011
6:33 pm
BOBO the Clown. i knew a clown was going to point that out that’s why i waited.
Ladies and gentlemen, Justin Houston weighs 264lbs.
RRTDawgs
February 4th, 2011
6:35 pm
Brent Key would be a good one as well you saw what UCF OL did to UGA defense just shut us down it sounds good about JJ .
BigTimeTECHFan
February 4th, 2011
6:35 pm
It’s UGA, he only has 2 years remaining and wants to be able to play right away, UGA has less talent then everyone so he’ll pick them to get more playing time.
Hunker down
February 4th, 2011
6:38 pm
Mr Jenkins is well spoken man. I thought the same thing about wright and the cap saying “NIck Who”. I remember Pouncey last year telling the freshman that came in acting all high and mighty at UF that they needed to shut their mouths since they hadn’t played a snap yet on Saturdays. Hope Jenkins comes and joins the dream team. Get to play Boise State in first game of his career at UGA. We can use you!
4th n 1
February 4th, 2011
6:39 pm
Man do we need Jenkins four the 3-4. He is a perfect fit for UGA. Come on John , be a Dawg! Woof Woof Woof !!
Vance Duly
February 4th, 2011
6:42 pm
Vasi has done enough fishing in the south Pacific to last a lifetime. But, he enjoyed visiting the 5 Points Waffle House with some of the coaches, according to reports. While some are reporting UCLA as closing strong on him, UGA is still believed to be in the running. Imagine 2 huge D-linemen in excess of 340..! Vasi is supposed to be 6′7 380, but agile now that he’s no longer a Mormon. 55 pancake blocks on offense as a senior, can eat over 40 pancakes at a sitting, and has his own scooter license, which eliminates a potential legal problem once in Athens.
dcbl
February 4th, 2011
6:45 pm
not for nothing, put he’s picking from AU; UM; UGA & UF??
But he doesn’t know who Gabe Wright is? And he dresses him down to reporters?
Go ahead and scratch AU off the list… Surely he didn’t say something less than positive to the media about a future teammate – go dawgs
DawgGuy1964
February 4th, 2011
7:20 pm
College ball is more like the NFL all the time…plug in the right pieces and change your fortunes quickly. Look at Alabama and Auburn the last two years. Have the right pieces fall into place and change the dynamics overnight. For Alabama it was the NG two years ago and Auburn it was QB using the Ju Co route. Jenkins is a big get should the Dawgs land him. If ever a Ju Co could make an immediate impact it’s on the D Line of CTG’s defense.
1eyedJack
February 4th, 2011
7:26 pm
I’ll bet “Crazy Hands” Mettenberger makes an immediate impact at LSU.
SecretNachos
February 4th, 2011
7:33 pm
Hopefully we get Jenkins! Oh and if you’re looking for a nacho recipe for the Super Bowl….ya gotta check out these guys….www.secretnachos.com
Dawg1
February 4th, 2011
7:33 pm
I’d say Jenkins is more crucial to the team that Crowell because of the 3-4 and what a vital piece the NG is…….. I hope to see you in Athens next year Mr. Jenkins! :fingers crossed:
icedawg
February 4th, 2011
7:48 pm
Would be nice if he were to choose Athens town.
bigdsel
February 4th, 2011
7:49 pm
come on jj, make our team great, Gooo Dawgs
PHIL
February 4th, 2011
8:02 pm
Tony you are a moron. You think Ray Drew can’t play because he has some principles?
Lance
February 4th, 2011
8:22 pm
this is highlight film on youtube. the first play he is playing tailback. He can run for a big man!!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTibvdL-VEQ
Greg McGarity
February 4th, 2011
8:35 pm
UGA players are now texting that Jenkins is a Dawg.
DawginOH
February 4th, 2011
8:39 pm
Come be a Dawg, Mr. Jenkins!!
Saban Says......
February 4th, 2011
8:45 pm
Aaahhhh, such lofty expectations, only to crash and burn yet again.
Boise State 34
Georgia 17
And with this the snowball affect will begin the downfall of the mighty Richt dynasty that has brought UGA so many championships…oh nevermind that never happened did it ?