Virginia Corner Has Gamecocks In His Top Five, And He Has A Commitment Date
SPORTSTALK / February 7, 2023
CB Noah Jenkins (6-2 200) of Highland Springs, VA dropped his top five on Monday and USC is firmly in the mix. The other four contenders are Virginia Tech, Pitt, Ole Miss and Penn State. Jenkins visited Columbia January 21st for the Gamecocks junior day event.Jenkins said what he recalls with the most fondness about the visit was how head coach Shane Beamer and secondary coach Torrian Gray treated him.
“Basically, just the love that they showed once I got on campus and the communications that they keep up,” Jenkins said. “Some schools when they offer, they lose communication and relationship with the player, but they have kept up the relationship ever since they offered me. I’ve got a great connection with Coach Gray and we have a great bond. He’s gotten so many players into the NFL, so I feel like me playing on the defensive side of the ball, it would be a great fit for me to go there and keep them in the top five because they are such a great program.”
Jenkins knows the Gamecocks have been hot on the recruiting trail, especially up his way, and he saw first-hand how Beamer and company are creating such a buzz.
“The system they have built for upcoming recruits,” Jenkins said. “Coach Beamer is a great coach. He doesn’t show fake energy towards the recruits. He’s real raw. His mom actually went to high school at Highland Springs and he has a great relationship with my high school coach. What I took from that visit was how they are trying to set everything up for us upcoming recruits.”
Jenkins and Gray have developed a pretty tight relationship over the past few months. Jenkins has studied Gray as a developer of cornerbacks, and he thinks he’s one of the best in college at doing that.
“I know he can produce big corners,” Jenkins said. “I’ve seen them get into the league. I like to play a lot of man, and he definitely plays a lot of man. He just improves so many players. When they get there, they might not be as good, but the work he gives them and the stuff he teaches them, I just feel like he’s great at doing it. We talk almost two times a week.”
Jenkins has his top five now, but maybe not his final five. But he knows he wants to get everything in order by Independence Day.
“I haven’t been to Pitt and Ole Miss yet, so I’m going to try to those two schools, but I’m going to also visit other schools to see what else I pick up,” Jenkins said. “July 4th is my commitment date, but I kind of got a feeling about the school I really want to go to out of my top five schools. I most definitely will visit more schools during the spring, but right now, out of the offers I have, those are my top five and I’m really feeling good about the school I really want to go to, but my decision will be made on July 4th.”
So, there is a big favorite in his mind at this point. What doesn’t Jenkins like most about that particular program?
“It’s the system itself,” Jenkins said. “Every school I have right now, they’ve got a great system, but I feel like this is the environment that fits me. I can’t really say too much right now.”
Jenkins played mostly wide receiver last season because turf toe limited his time on defense, but he said this season he will definitely be one of the starting corners.