16 Days Till Arizona Football: The Leap by The Lake

The countdown continues as we are now officially 16 days away from the season opener for Arizona against Hawaii. Over the next few weeks, we will be taking a look back at some of the top players in Arizona football history by jersey number as we inch closer towards the start of the season for the Wildcats.

We continue with former Arizona QB Ortege Jenkins who played with the Wildcats from 1996-00.

Jenkins helped orchestrate one of the most iconic plays in Arizona football history with the "Leap by the Lake" in the Wildcats' win in Seattle over the Washington Huskies in 1998.

With 12 seconds left on the clock, Arizona coach Dick Tomey had one message to Jenkins, telling him, "Don't get sacked" with the Wildcats at the nine-yard line of Washington. With his top wide receiver, Dennis Northcutt, doubled upon taking the snap, Jenkins continued to drift back after looking to both the left and right.

Jenkins had backed his way up to the 20-yard line with the pressure continuing to get closer to him. Arizona RB Trung Candidate had run a route to the route, taking another defender with him. Tomey had told Jenkins during the timeout, "If you run, you'd better make it." With all of the coverage on the secondary on the left and right of the end zone, Jenkins noticed an opening up the middle.

With all the defenders from the end zone closing in on Jenkins, he put everything on the line and dove from the three-yard line for the miraculous score to win the game for Arizona. The Wildcats kicked the extra point and went on to win 31-28 in a game that will go down in not just Arizona football history, but college football history.

In honor of Leap Day, we're throwing it back to one of the most iconic plays in program history. The "Leap by the Lake" from '98 🤯 pic.twitter.com/ul0ivaakTW
— Arizona Football (@ArizonaFBall) February 29, 2024

Jenkins went on to sign with the Baltimore Ravens as an undrafted free agent in the 2001 NFL Draft. He was later released that August, before the season started. One month later, Jenkins signed with the British Columbia Lions in the Canadian Football League. The following year, in 2022, he would complete one pass on five attempts for 42 yards with an interception. He also added four carries for 14 yards on the ground.

The "Leap by the Lake" remains one that is among the top plays in program history, and it will never be forgotten by UA fans. Jenkins was inducted into Arizona's Ring of Honor.

What do you remember from Jenkins' career at Arizona, or what have you heard? Where were you when the "Leap by the Lake" happened? Let us know and be sure to follow us on our X account by clicking on the link.