CHAMPAIGN —
A.J. Jenkins
suffered a wrist injury last season and a pectoral strain this summer. But it’s clear the Illinois receiver doesn’t have a bruised confidence.
While complimenting teammate
Darius Millines
, Jenkins praised the sophomore as a standout No. 2 receiver.
“You all know who No. 1 is,” he said with a smile, indicating himself.
Teammates and coaches are convinced Jenkins can back up the talk with a breakout season.
“We think he can be a big-time playmaker for us,” quarterback
Nathan Scheelhaase
said. “The game plan (for) him isn’t going to change much. He feels he should have turned some of those 5-, 10-yard gains into big, long runs, touchdown runs.”
Jenkins was tagged with a red jersey through much of the preseason practices, limiting him from contact due to a strained pectoral muscle. He said he has no lingering pain and is ready for Saturday’s season opener against Arkansas State, where he hopes to start building on last season’s performances that made him the team’s leading receiver.
Jenkins, a senior, grabbed 56 passes for 746 yards and seven touchdowns last season.
His goals for this season are loftier: Minimum 100 yards receiving per game and 300 yards per game as an offense.
“I feel great,” he said. “I feel like Saturday I’m going to have a real good game.”
Backup job:
If an unfortunate circumstance calls for it, coach
Ron Zook
said backup quarterback
Miles Osei
would enter the game in place of Scheelhaase.
But he also said freshman
Reilly O’Toole
could see time as well if need be.
“There’s no question in my mind that Miles has had a great camp,” Zook said. “God forbid we have to have a backup quarterback, you’ll see Miles. I don’t think there’s any question there. There’s a chance you can see Reilly as well. They both have had great camps.”
Running back flow:
While
Jason Ford
has distinguished himself as the clear go-to running back due to a strong preseason, Zook said expect to see a host of ball carriers.
Troy Pollard
is listed as Ford’s backup on the depth chart, but freshman
Donovann
Young
received rave reviews from offensive coordinator
Paul Petrino
during Camp Rantoul. Freshman
Josh Ferguson
is also considered a solid back.
“It depends on flow of the game,” Zook said. “Coach Petrino is wide open. He doesn’t pull back. We’re going to need all of them.”
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