Jenkins attended Our Lady of Good Counsel High School in Olney, Maryland, where he was a two-sport athlete in football and track.

[3] He was recognized as a Parade magazine high school All-American in 2008, and was chosen to play in the 2009 Under Armour All-America Game.

At the conclusion of the season, Jenkins was voted to the 2010 Freshman All-American team by the Southeastern Conference coaches.

On November 10, 2012, against UL-Lafayette, with the score tied at 20, Jenkins returned a blocked punt 36 yards for a touchdown, giving Florida a 27-20 lead with :02 left in the fourth quarter.

[9] Jenkins took the starting job due to the injury issues surrounding the teams linebacker corps.

His father is an architect in the Washington Metropolitan Area and his mother played basketball at Howard and is a black belt in karate.

His parents devised a three-page matrix of Jenkin's college choices, breaking down schools by categories such as world academic ranking, graduation rates, diversity, and number of NFL Draft picks in the past five years.

He was also an accomplished track athlete in high school, running the 100 metres in 11.14 seconds, and throwing the discus 137 feet 2 inches (41.81 m).