COLLEGE WRESTLING PROFILE The return of Bubba
Jenkins sets sights on NCAA title after transferring from Penn State to Arizona State
By Craig Sesker ubba Jenkins wasn’t supposed to win. Nobody gave Jenkins much of a chance when he walked up on the elevated platform to
B
face No. 1 seed Brent Metcalf of Iowa in the 2008 NCAA finals in St. Louis. But Jenkins had other ideas. Jenkins came out and scored the first
takedown in the 149-pound finals. Following an escape by the heavily- favored Metcalf, Jenkins struck again with another takedown. “I was winning 4-1, and I was feeling
great,” said Jenkins, a Penn State sopho- more at the time. “I was ready to win a national title. “And then the storm came.” Metcalf stormed back, catching the sixth-seeded Jenkins on his back late in the second period en route to winning the match 14-8. Metcalf won the Hodge Trophy as the nation’s best college wrestler that season. “I had the lead, but we got in a scram-
ble situation and he got five points,” Jenkins said. “I felt like I had the lead and I let it slip away. I was so upset when I stood on the podium after the match. I don’t want to feel that way again.” Now a senior, the 22-year-old Jenkins
is ready to make another run at a nation- al title.
Jenkins has a new school and a new outlook. He transferred to Arizona State for his senior season and starts his final college campaign ranked No. 3 nationally by Amateur Wrestling News at 157 pounds. Jenkins has experienced his share of adversity since reaching the NCAA finals in 2008. Jenkins was 24-1 and the No. 2 seed for the 2009 NCAA tournament in St.
18 USA Wrestler
Bubba Jenkins celebrates after advancing to the 2008 NCAA finals at 149 pounds while wrestling for Penn State. Larry Slater photo.
Louis, but did not place. He fell to Lock Haven’s Matthew Fittery 12- 6 in the first round before dropping his next bout. “I hurt my back in
the first round at nationals,” Jenkins said. “I also had hurt my ankle. I was having some really bad back spasms that bothered me. They wouldn’t go away. I was beating the kid from Lock Haven pretty handily and then my back started to spasm out. I could barely move after that.”
Jenkins said he was unfairly criticized
for his performance in 2009. “I had a great season and I was the
No. 2 seed,” he said. “I had pinned the Lock Haven kid in the first period earlier that season. A lot of people said I was out
of shape and that I quit at nationals. That’s not true at all. My back gave out on me, and I couldn’t do anything about being injured.” Jenkins was redshirting last season at
Penn State before he was dismissed from the team in December 2009 by first-year Nittany Lions coach Cael Sanderson. “I gave everything I had to the Penn
State program,” Jenkins said. “I’m still a little confused about what I did wrong. I guess it was my time to go. It wasn’t a good fit apparently.” Jenkins came back last spring to win
the University Nationals title in freestyle wrestling in Akron, Ohio. Jenkins won a 2007 Junior World title in freestyle wrestling in Beijing, China. He transferred to Arizona State this
past summer. He was reunited with fellow Virginia Beach, Va., native Brian Stith, an assistant coach for ASU.
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