'Who wore it best' at Michigan State: No. 51

Ever see a number on a Michigan State football jersey and think of all the great players to wear it? Me, too. In this daily series, I’ll give you my take on which Spartan football player was the best ever to wear each number. The criteria are simple: How did he perform at MSU? And what kind of impact did he have on the program?

No. 51 – Carlos Jenkins

Linebacker, 1987-90, Boynton Beach, Fla.

Résumé

1987: 12 solo tackles, 12 assisted, 24 total tackles, fumble recovery

1988: 70 solo tackles, 29 assisted, 99 total tackles, 6 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 6 pass breakups

1989: 46 solo tackles, 29 assisted, 75 total tackles, 7 tackles for loss, 3 sacks, 3 interceptions, 3 pass breakups, 3 fumble recoveries

1990: 68 solo tackles, 48 assisted, 116 total tackles, 8 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 2 interceptions, 4 pass breakups, 3 fumble recoveries

Total: 196 solo tackles, 118 assisted, 314 total tackles, 21 tackles for loss, 7 sacks, 5 interceptions, 13 pass breakups, 6 fumble recoveries

Why Jenkins?

It’s easy to get lost in the shadows when you play alongside some of the best linebackers in school history.

Percy Snow, Dixon Edwards, Chuck Bullough and Tim Moore were household names in East Lansing. Carlos Jenkins deserves to be mentioned in the same sentence.

Jenkins, a 6-foot-3, 217-pound sledgehammer from Florida, didn’t receive a ton of accolades during his time at Michigan State. His biggest personal accomplishment was earning first-team All-Conference honors as a senior in 1990. His teams, however, had plenty of special moments.

As a freshman, he was part of a Rose Bowl winning team, knocking off Southern California 20-17 in Pasadena. During his junior season, Jenkins made 75 tackles and tacked on three interceptions and fumble recoveries as the 8-4 Spartans rolled over Hawaii in the Aloha Bowl.

His trademark win came in 1990. You might recall it.

“No. 1 vs. No one.”

Jenkins and the Spartans knocked off top-ranked Michigan 28-27 in Ann Arbor. Future Heisman Trophy winner Desmond Howard dropped a 2-point conversion in the end zone with 6 seconds remaining in regulation on a play that many insist should have resulted in a pass interference call on MSU's Eddie Brown. Instead, it was one of the biggest upset wins in Spartan history.

Jenkins finished that season with 116 tackles, two interceptions and three fumble recoveries. His six career fumble recoveries are still good enough for second all-time in program history.

The Minnesota Vikings selected Jenkins in the third round of the 1991 NFL Draft. After his second professional season, Jenkins hit a manhole cover on his motorcycle going 70 mph. He flew off the bike and skidded 80 feet on pavement. More than 15 percent of his body was covered in road rash. He was hospitalized for eight days.

He returned to the field the following season and played until 1996, wrapping up his six-year career with the St. Louis Rams. Jenkins racked up 9 sacks and four interceptions in 80 NFL games.

Who else wore No. 51?

Ervin Baldwin (DE, 2006-07), Thomas Beard (C, 1969-70), David Behrman (T/C, 1960-62), Anthony Bell (LB, 1982-85), John Budinski (HB, 1938), Joseph Fomenko (C, 1957), Fou Fonoti (OT, 2011-13), Peter Fusi (C/T, 1946-48), Brian Grant (C, 1997), Terry Harvey (LB, 1992-95), Joseph Jacquemain (C/OG, 1979-81), Bradshaw Littlejohn (LB, 2000), Harold Lucas (C/T, 1963-65), David Lumsden (C, 1948-49), Chris Morris (C, 2002-05), James Neal (C, 1952-53), Fred Quigley (HB, 1939), Robert Ribby (C, 1993), James Sciarini (C, 1975-77), Edward Zalar (E, 1955)

Contact Cody Tucker at (517) 377-1070 or cjtucker@lsj.com and follow him on Twitter @CodyTucker_LSJ.

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