There is no shortage of talent available in the Class of 2007 and the UVa coaching staff is off to a fast start. Defensive tackle Nick Jenkins recently committed to the Cavaliers and spoke with HooNation about his decision.
The massive 6-3, 310-pound lineman from Our Lady of Good Counsel High School in Wheaton, MD has All-American potential up the middle and committed to Virginia after receiving offers from most of the major programs in the nation.
“There are a lot of reasons why I chose UVa that I’ll get into, but the most important thing was just that I felt comfortable there,” he said. “When I went down there everyone was excited to see me and really welcomed me. When the coaches were at my school or at the NIKE camp the coaches were around me. I could just really tell that they wanted me to be a part of their program.
“I also feel like I can have an early impact at Virginia, especially compared to some of the other schools that were recruiting me. The ties the coaching staff has to the NFL didn’t hurt. Coach Groh, Coach London, Coach Poindexter all know what it takes, and I would like to have a future in football after college.”
While his announcement only came recently, Jenkins knew he would likely be a Cavalier for quite some time.
“After visiting UVa in April I knew I would commit there,” he said. “I wanted to take my time and let everything set in. In all honesty it is tough to turn down offers from places like Florida, Tennessee and Michigan. They’re great programs. But I’m completely sold on Virginia and my verbal is definitely solid.”
Jenkins made no secret about the fact that he would like to compete for playing time early in his college career.
“Like I said, I think I’ll be able to come in and fight for playing time at UVa. I think they’re going to be losing two seniors around the time I come in, and that will pretty much leave a junior and a sophomore ahead of me.
“I’m going to compete. Whether I start or not, I’ll be learning and improving. Either way, it will be good to have five years of experience in front of me, pushing me and making me a better player.”
Jenkins is a 4-star prospect according to Scout.com. Last year he earned first team all-conference, all-county and all-state honors as one of the most active defensive tackles in the region. He is the 11th verbal for UVa for the Class of 2007.