There are 95 days that separate us from Ohio State's march to Blacksburg. To help pass the time until the Buckeyes put the Sandman to sleep I will countdown Ohio State's top 100 players according to the rubric* listed at the bottom of this article.
Jenkins was team captain and MVP of the 2003 team.
NO. 95 MICHAEL JENKINS, WR (2000-2003)
Born: 1982 (Tampa, FL)
High School: A.P. Leto (Tampa)
OHIO STATE CAREER
- The Buckeyes were 40-11 with Jenkins on the team.
- 2002 National Champion.
- 2002 Big Ten Title.
- 2003 Defeated No. 1 Miami 31-24 in 2OT to win the Tostistos Fiesta Bowl National Championship Game.
- 2001 Defeated That Team 26-20.
- 2002 Defeated That Team 14-9.
HONORS
- 2003 Captain.
- 2003 Team MVP.
NFL DRAFT
Round 1 to the Atlanta Falcons with the 29th pick of the 2003 draft.
The Catch.
JENKINS' OHIO STATE CAREER PER ohiostatebuckeyes.com:
Senior split end Michael Jenkins has been selected by his teammates as the Most Valuable Player on the 2003 Ohio State football team. Jenkins received the award at Sunday's annual team banquet held at the Adams Mark Hotel in Columbus. Approximately 800 people attended the luncheon and awards ceremony, where 26 seniors were recognized for their contributions this past year.
Jenkins led the Buckeyes in receiving during the regular season with 50 receptions for 738 yards and five touchdowns. He averaged 14.8 yards per catch and 61.5 receiving yards per game.
Jenkins is just the third wide receiver in Ohio State history to win MVP honors. The other two were split end Cris Carter in 1986 and flanker Jeff Graham in 1990.
MICHAEL JENKINS' OHIO STATE CAREER PER Wikipedia:
Jenkins became a three-year starter for the Ohio State Buckeyes, starting 38 of his final 39 games, caught 165 passes for 2,898 yards with a 17.6 avg. and 16 touchdowns in his career.
He finished career with at least one reception in 38 consecutive games and helped the Buckeyes capture 2002 BCS National Championship at the 2003 Fiesta Bowl.
His 2,898 yards rank eighth on the Big Ten Conference career-record list, while also topping the previous school all-time record of 2,855 by David Boston.
Jenkins earned All-Big Ten Conference honorable mention as a senior after leading the team with 55 receptions for 834 yards with a 15.2 avg and 7 touchdowns while adding 178 yards and a touchdown on 20 punt returns.
He was also an All-Big Ten Conference second-team choice as a junior after leading the team with a career-high 61 receptions for 1,076 yards (17.6 avg.) and 6 touchdowns.
During the 2002 Ohio State championship season, Jenkins made one of the biggest and most memorable catches in Buckeye history, the "Holy Buckeye" play at Purdue.
HOLY BUCKEYE
JENKINS' PUNT RETURN AGAINST IOWA
| CATEGORY | POINTS |
|---|---|
| HEISMAN | |
| NO. RETIRED / HONORED | |
| BIG TEN MVP | |
| TEAM MVP | 5 |
| ALL-AMERICAN | |
| CAPTAIN | 4 |
| 1ST ROUND NFL DRAFT PICK | 4 |
| ALL-BIG TEN | |
| ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICAN | |
| NFL DRAFT PICK | |
| ACADEMIC ALL-BIG TEN | |
| LETTER | 1 |
| TOTAL | 14 |
For more information on Jenkins and other players who wore No. 12 check out these countdowns from 2013 and 2014.
Sources- The Ohio State Team Guide, ohiostatebuckeyes.com and Wikipedia
| CATERGORY | POINTS |
|---|---|
| HEISMAN | 8 |
| NO. RETIRED / HONORED | 8 |
| BIG TEN MVP | 6 |
| TEAM MVP | 5 |
| ALL-AMERICAN | 4 |
| CAPTAIN | 4 |
| 1ST ROUND NFL DRAFT PICK | 4 |
| ALL-BIG TEN | 3 |
| ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICAN | 3 |
| NFL DRAFT PICK | 2 |
| ACADEMIC ALL-BIG TEN | 1 |
| LETTER | 0.25 PER YEAR |
