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Husker Signee Analysis: O-Lineman Justin Evans-Jenkins
When Nebraska started game-planning for the 2022 recruiting class, they had hoped to sign at least two offensive linemen. They brought several high-priority targets to campus but struck out with all of them. They did, however, have a commitment from Valen Erickson at one point. The Chicago (IL) lineman pledged to the Huskers on July 30 but flipped his commitment to Missouri on Sept. 6 and eventually signed with the Tigers.
Arguably Nebraska's No. 1 O-line target, Ashton Craig, took an official visit June 4-6 for the Friday Night Lights event. The staff felt good about the Lawrenceburg (IN) lineman until hometown Notre Dame got more involved. Craig ended up committing to and signing with the Irish.
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It was a common theme this past spring and summer. Sullivan Weidman, out of Brookline, Massachusetts, had the Huskers in his top three with West Virginia and Indiana after taking a self-guided tour of Lincoln in March. He signed with the Mountaineers. Jake Maikkula was another top-of-the-board candidate. The Littleton (CO) product took an official visit June 21-22, but eventually committed to and signed with Stanford. Jalen Klemm, out of Gibsonia, Pennsylvania, visited Lincoln a couple times unofficially but ended up signing with Kansas State. As did John Pastore, a lineman out of Erie (CO) who earned an offer from Nebraska after impressing coaches during an individual workout June 4.
After Erickson left the class in September, for the next three months, it seemed the Huskers would miss on an offensive lineman altogether in this class, especially after Greg Austin was fired. Thanks to defensive line coach Mike Dawson's connections to the state of New Jersey, the Huskers were able to identify Justin Evans-Jenkins as a prospect of interest just weeks before the early signing period.
A two-way starter and three-year captain for Irvington High School, Evans-Jenkins spent the early portion of his high school career viewed as one of the best linemen in the Northeast for his class. He collected over 15 offers, including Alabama, Boston College, Cincinnati, Duke, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, NC State, Penn State, Pitt, Texas A&M, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest and West Virginia.
The vast majority of those offers actually came during the spring evaluation period in 2019, when Evans-Jenkins was finishing his freshman academic year. He was a standout at camps and was a hot commodity early on. Penn State, West Virginia and Virginia were recruiting him extremely hard initially. He was also getting a lot of attention from Kentucky, Duke, Wake Forest and Stanford. As a junior, his recruitment started to slow down and interest from top teams began to wane. Evans-Jenkins remained a difference-maker on the field, but teams felt he had maxed out his frame. Listed generously at 6-foot-2 and 280-pounds, Evans-Jenkins appears to also have short arms, which isn't ideal on either side of the line.
On offense, Evans-Jenkins played mostly left tackle and was a starting defensive tackle on the other side of the ball. Most schools viewed him as a three-technique in a base 4-3, and the majority of his offers were extended with that in mind. With his recruitment essentially stalling out, Justin and his family were hoping his senior film would reignite interest and provide new opportunities.
Indeed, it was his senior film as an offensive lineman that intrigued Nebraska, and the Huskers reached out to try and bring him to campus. He took an official visit to Lincoln Dec. 10-12 and got the chance to spend time with new offensive line coach Donovan Raiola, who had been hired earlier in the week. The Huskers extended an offer on the eve of the early signing period. Evans-Jenkins announced his decision and signed with Nebraska the following day during a ceremony at his high school.
The Nebraska staff likes Evans-Jenkins' wrestling background.
Justin Evans-Jenkins via Twitter
As a senior, Evans-Jenkins helped lead Irvington to a 12-2 record and the school's first sectional championship in 102 seasons. He racked up 83.5 tackles (20 for loss) and 14.5 sacks on his way to being recognized on the first-team defense of the USA Today Network All-New Jersey team, as well as being a member of their All-Essex County team. He was also named an all-state selection for his efforts on the offensive line, a feat he achieved as a junior as well.
Along with his prowess on the gridiron, Evans-Jenkins is an accomplished wrestler. Less than two weeks ago, he won the Essex County Tournament in the 285-pound weight class, pinning all three of his opponents in under a minute. He is currently 16-0.
Nebraska took Evans-Jenkins knowing he'll need two or three years to develop. The staff likes his athleticism and wrestling background, and hope he can be an option at guard, or more likely center, down the line. His coach at Nebraska, Donovan Raiola, knows a thing or two about being an undersized center. He started 39 games at center for Wisconsin and is also only 6-foot-2. Husker fans probably remember his brother Dominic (insert sarcasm here). He too was 6-foot-2.
Evans-Jenkins, who was a high school teammate of current Husker linebacker Mikai Gbayor for three years, is the first football player to ever graduate early from Irvington. His uncle, Josh Evans, played safety for Florida and spent a handful of years in the NFL as a sixth-round draft pick of the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2013.
