Ohio State's Malcolm Jenkins welcomes role of inspiring his teammates before kickoff
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Doug Lesmerises
Plain Dealer Reporter
Columbus- Several minutes before kickoff Saturday night at Beaver Stadium, nearly 100,000 Penn State fans will be staring at the 70 Ohio State players in the center of the field. The 70 will be looking to one.
Surrounded by his teammates, junior cornerback Malcolm Jenkins, the emotional leader of the No. 1 team in the country, will take off his helmet and hand it to linebacker James Laurinaitis, and Laurinaitis will thrust it into the air. The Buckeyes will start to bounce.
Cornerback Donald Washington and linebacker Larry Grant will begin to scream as well. But in the middle, it will be Jenkins who is charged with getting Ohio State ready to play in maybe the most intimidating stadium in the country. He'll chant, his teammates will chant back, and Jenkins will know where the Buckeyes (8-0, 4-0 Big Ten) stand.