2016 LA Valley CB Eric Jenkins Recruitment Opens Up to a World of Opportunities

Written by Ryan Wright

Twitter: @HogManInLA

Los Angeles Valley sophomore cornerback Eric Jenkins had his path set forward heading to Cincinnati and his recruiting essentially shutdown after committing to the Bearcats on July 20. The football world can change in an instant, and for Jenkins it did – all over one class.

Jenkins had his letter of intent signed, sealed, and delivered to Cincinnati but because he was one math class short of graduating, his LOI was voided putting him back on the recruiting trail. As sad and frustrating as Jenkins’ story may be, don’t feel too badly for him because he has a lot of suitors lining up needing a shutdown corner at their Division-I school.

The New Orleans native had a great freshman year at the Junior College level coming up with 27 tackles, five tackles for a loss, seven pass breakups, and three picks. The offers started coming in with programs like Colorado State, Grambling State, Illinois, Indiana, Washington State, UTEP, Purdue, Central Michigan, and Iowa State seeking his skill set at their respective programs. The 5’10”, 180 pound, talent did not disappoint during his sophomore season with the Monarchs coming up with roughly 30 tackles, eight pass breakups, and seven interceptions on the season.

Now that Jenkins is back on the market, schools like Arkansas State, Toledo, Southern Miss, and Boise State are setting up lines of communication with him with others jumping into the fray. In a Recruiting News Guru exclusive interview, I met with Jenkins to go partly over his sophomore season, found out the inside story on the parting of ways with Cincinnati, and got a recruiting news update on the schools already showing interest after his announcement on Friday that he was back on the market.

Interview

Eric, you had another great season for LA Valley. What was your stat line during your sophomore season?

“I had seven interceptions picking off two in our bowl game (a 42-27 win vs. San Bernardino in the Golden State Bowl). I’d say I had about 30 tackles, seven or eight pass breakups – a lot of passes did not come my way this year. Maybe two to three passes a game were caught on me for about 14 or 15 yards total. Otherwise I was picking them off.”

You drew a big assignment against San Bernardino.

“I was covering No. 18 (Mason Rutherford – 53 receptions, 919 yards, 8 touchdowns). Yeah, he’s a really good player. I was covering him.”

What honors do you earn at the end of the 2015 season?

“I was unanimous All-Conference, All-State, the Defensive MVP in our bowl game, and team Defensive MVP for the year. I’m not sure about being an All-American. I have not looked to see who was an All-American from California.”

You were committed to Cincinnati but they voided your LOI. What happened there?

“I was one class short of graduating.”

Which class?

“A math class. I am taking my math class now and then I am done.”

Is the class going well?

“I have a tutor I work with every day. Yeah, it’s going well.”

Which schools are recruiting you right now?

“Right now, I started reaching back out to all the schools that were recruiting me before letting them know I’m back on the market. I couldn’t reach out until after my NLI was voided. I now can contact all of these schools again. I’m just trying to see the responses I’m getting from the different schools. Toledo seems very interested, they have offered. It’s a waiting process. Southern Miss too, they’ve opened a spot for me. Boise State said they were going to look for a spot for me too.”

When you evaluate a school that you are interested in, how do you go about that process? What are the things that are most important to you?

“First I look at the coaches, the coaching staff, and find out how they treat their players. Do they treat their players like family? Then I look at the school. What are the graduation rates? After that I look at the relationship with the players and coaches. I want to make sure there is a strong relationship there. After that, I look at the defense they run and the schemes they use. Does that fit me? That’s my process.”

Great answer. What have you been working on since the season ended with your offseason workouts?

“I’m trying to add more weight. I’m trying to get up to 190.”

You’re originally from New Orleans but played ball in Los Angeles. Based on the fact that you were ready to go to Cincinnati I’m assuming distance from New Orleans or LA is not really important to you when looking at different schools.

“Distance to me does not mean anything. To reach your dreams you have to get outside your comfort zone. I’m willing to go anywhere to play.”

Eric, thanks for your time today and good luck with the rest of the recruiting process.

“Thank you.”

Photo credit: recruitingnewsguru.com; Eric Jenkins at LA Valley College.