For Jeffrey Jenkins, coaching hurdles is part of a family legacy that started with actually competing in Track & Field meets as a hurdler. When it comes to competing at track meets, this started with Jeffrey’s father, A.C. Jenkins. A.C. was a star athlete who matched the Ohio State meet record for 120 yard high hurdles back in 1950 (:14.5). Coming out of Mansfield, OH, A.C. delivered the goods as a hurdler. He was also called to deliver the goods on the gridiron. In 1954, A.C. was the 6th round draft pick for the world champion Cleveland Browns, the championship team that was led by the legendary Hall of Fame Quarterback, Otto Graham. His draft was also three years prior to the draft of the legendary Hall of Famer, Jim Brown.
Due to the circumstances of the Jim Crow era, A.C. was diminished to sports obscurity once he stopped playing professional football. He went back home to Mansfield and was directed to pick up a job at a local factory. Amidst all of the struggles during that time, A.C. nurtured a seed that would grow to be a new chapter to the Jenkins legacy. His son, Jeffrey, was developing into a star athlete himself. A.C. coached his son in the world of Track & Field as, you guessed it, a hurdler!
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Now, Coach Jenkins has mentored many athletes in hurdles, and some of them are state and USATF national champions such as Chad Zallow and NFL star Ted Ginn, Jr. The athletes that he has paid special attention to are his family. He took his son, Emanuel, under his wing, but injuries plagued him early on in his career. He also trained his nephew, Iman Glanton, who starred with a talented Benedictine HS relay team. He also ran for Garden City Community College. Through it all, Coach Jenkins continues to coach more and more hurdlers in order to help them get full scholarships to colleges and universities so that they can utilize their athleticism to get them a free education, which will help them continue a legacy of their choice.
Our coach always stresses "quality over quantity."
“Just trying to push and catch people, that’s what I’m good at,” Farris said.
Before I went to him, I didn’t know anything about hurdle form....He taught me everything I know.
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