Arden Key knows not to test Pete Jenkins.
Jenkins, the Tigers’ 75-year-old defensive line coach, has been around the coaching circuit for more than five decades and is on his third stint with the Tigers.
So when Jenkins took the reigns from Ed Orgeron as defensive line coach, the sophomore pass rusher noticed a distinct difference between the two.
“Coach Pete coaches us like grown men,” Key said.
And you better listen to him.
“With him being in the league so long teaching grown men, basically whatever he [tells you] you gotta do,” Key said. “He’ll walk us through it, and we got the utmost respect for him … Everybody is dialed in and ready to learn what’s new.”
Jenkins is a mentor to Orgeron, and the two are very close, LSU’s coach said.
During LSU’s pregame walk down Victory Hill outside of Tiger Stadium, Jenkins is second off the bus — right after Orgeron.
Jenkins even made an appearance on Orgeron’s weekly radio show last Wednesday.
Orgeron enjoys Jenkins’ presence, and he won’t hesitate to tell anyone that, either.
“A special guest joining us here, and I know [he’s a] special man to you,” LSU’s host of The Ed Orgeron Show on Wednesdays, Chris Blair, said Oct. 19 during the show at TJ Ribs.
“What a special guest and a great man,” Orgeron followed. “He’s my right hand man and helped me be a better head coach and a better man on a daily basis. He’s my mentor, and it’s just an honor to have him with us.”
Tommy Clapp, the father of sophomore offensive guard Will Clapp, played under Jenkins when he was the defensive line coach in 1984. Tommy Clapp calls Jenkins one of the biggest influences in his life.
“I’ve heard Pete Jenkins’ story since I was a little kid,” Will said. “I met him when I was a little kid … Pete knows his stuff. He’s considered the father of almost everything the D-Line does.”
But Jenkins isn’t as youthful as he was in 1984 when he began his first stint with LSU. When outside linebackers coach Dennis “Meatball” Johnson was moved from graduate assistant to a position coach, Jenkins was left alone to coach the defensive line.
Senior defensive end Christian LaCouture, who is out for the season with a torn ACL, has been involved with Jenkins and has become a de facto assistant coach.
“Pete is by himself, and he’s 75,” Key said. “He can’t do a lot of things he wants to do, but Christian LaCouture is out there helping us out. He’s been out there before, so he really letting us know what he see out there they we don’t see.”
During practice and before games, LaCouture is can be seen helping out with drills or giving technique tips to different defensive lineman beside Jenkins.
Key says having LaCouture isn’t like a coach, but more like an “older brother.”
As for Jenkins, Key said he keeps everything fairly candid.
“If he saw something, he’s going to let you know,” Key said. “If you’re good, he’s going to let you know. Depending on what you’re doing, he’s going to let you know if you having a sorry practice or a good practice.”