Coming in at #4 on my 2021 USF Football Top 5 Players List is a guy that comes from the most overlooked area on the team in terms of raw talent—the Offensive Line.
Standing at 6’5” and weighing in at 338 pounds, the 4th best player on this list is the commander of the left side of the Offensive Line. This #BayMade Left-Tackle (Gaither HS) has been helping hold down the Line since 2018.
His name? Donovan Jennings (@donovan_blue, @donovan1124).
🪦 ‘We seen dilemmas like Nelly and Kelly that end in the deadliest fashion’ #BagSZN #USF #JCole pic.twitter.com/ALT1gzYNDA
— SoFloBulls (@SoFloBulls_) July 14, 2021
#4: Donovan Jennings
When talking about consistency within the USF Football program, very few names come to mind. One of them is the Bulls’ current Left Tackle, Donovan Jennings. Dating back to the 2018 season, Jennings has been one of the few indisputable starters down the entire roster.
Blake Barnett at Quarterback? Jennings at Left Tackle. Brett Kean at Quarterback? Jennings at Left Tackle. Jordan McCloud at Quarterback? Jennings at Left Tackle. Cade Fortin at Quarterback? Jennings at Left Tackle.
The list goes on and on of how many Quarterbacks Jennings has blocked for. I can certainly name at least five additional Quarterbacks he protected. He always stayed true to himself and got the job done.
ᗩᒪᗯᗩYᔕ ᗩ GᖇEᗩT ᗪᗩY TO ᗷE ᗩ ᗷᑌᒪᒪ
🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢
🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘#GoBulls🤘 🆙 🏈 🏖 🌴 ☀️ pic.twitter.com/dE13YWZfKW— 𝑪𝒐𝒂𝒄𝒉 𝑫𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒆𝒍 𝑫𝒂 𝑷𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒐 (@CoachDaPrato) July 1, 2021
2018 Season: Freshman Year
In his first season as a Bull, Jennings only started in one-third of the games—all on the left side of the ball. He assisted USF Running Back, Jordan Cronkrite, reach a 1,000+ yard season, the 9th in program history. As a young Offensive Lineman, he also played a crucial role in USF ranking 33rd nationally in total offense (437.7 yards/game) and 43rd nationally in rushing offense (194.0 yards/game). Jennings also played a part in creating holes for Cronkrite to rush for a USF and AAC record 302 yards and three touchdowns in one game.
True freshman Brad Cecil with his first start at center. Joins true freshman Donovan Jennings and redshirt freshman Demetris Harris starting on the O-line.
— USF Football (@USFFootball) October 20, 2018
It gets even better…..
2019 Season: Sophomore Year
Jennings’ second season in the Green and Gold was even better. In the 10 games he appeared in, he made eight starts at Left Tackle. He also paved the way for Cronkrite’s three 100-yard rushing games and Kelley Joiner’s single 100-yard rushing game. He also helped Cronkrite finish 9th in the AAC with 68.7 rushing yards per game. In 2019, South Florida totaled 1,936 rushing yards and 330 yards per game.
2020 Season: Junior Year
In his most recent season, Jennings started seven of nine games at his usual Left Tackle position, missing two games due to Covid-19 protocol. In the Bulls’ annual War On I4 game against in-state rival UCF, Jennings assisted Joiner and Brian Battie as they each ran for 100-yards in the season finale.
What’s Next?
I would say next up for Jennings is a season filled with protecting the USF Quarterback (whoever it may be) and lead blocking. He is a player that always steps up to any challenge and does his best to lead the Bulls to victory.
Tackle Donovan Jennings spoke today about how the o-line is bonding. @USFFootball pic.twitter.com/XpARV4raH2
— Tom Layberger (@TomLay810) August 18, 2020
Look out for #73 on game day.
Check back next week to see who #3 on the list is!