A lot of what went right for Ryan Walters’ much-anticipated defense last season was thanks to Kydran Jenkins.

The barrel-chested linebacker terrorized quarterbacks as a senior, teaming up with Nic Scourton opposite him on the defensive line to tally 17.5 sacks in total. The combo was often the pride of the defense, but it won’t be this season.

Scourton departed for Texas A&M in the offseason and Jenkins went on the move too – not to a new home, but a new position. As part of the coaching staff’s dialogue with Jenkins in the offseason, he was pitched on moving from outside linebacker, where his primary focus was to bull rush quarterbacks with a hand in the dirt, to inside linebacker, where he’ll operate in the middle as a jack-of-all-trades.

Jenkins liked the sound of the change. In fact, he had already been thinking of it, he said, because it would add to his college resume when it comes time to talk with pro teams.

The NFL was an option for the fifth-year senior in the spring, as was moving to another school. But Jenkins thought he needed another year of seasoning in college before making a jump, and he would fit in more as a linebacker in the pros anyway at 6-foot-1, 253 pounds than as an edge defender.

“Whereas he was kind of an undersized edge guy,” defensive coordinator Kevin Kane said in April, “now he’s a really big-time inside linebacker. He’s instinctive, he has a way of finding the ball, where he can maneuver around blocks and chase the ball down.”

Head coach Ryan Walters’ only concern about the move was whether Jenkins would be nimble enough for it.

“It was, would he be athletic enough to be able to play sideline to sideline and make open field tackles?” Walters said.

But by all accounts, from the coaching staff to fellow players, Jenkins has become a fearsome inside linebacker since taking up the position in April. He said things clicked in fall camp.

“Having the reps, taking the reps,” Jenkins said. “Get more reps and mental reps. Lots more film.”

Note to quarterbacks, though: Jenkins still wants to put you on the ground. He said at July’s media days that he’ll “still rush every third down” and while smiling said that he’d probably still get after the passer on early downs often “depending on the call.”

“No running back can guard him if he's blitzing up the middle,” said fellow Purdue linebacker Winston Berglund. “Adding his blitz ability to the linebacker room is unbelievable.”

Inside linebacker is often termed by those inside the game as “quarterback” of the defense, because of a player’s role in organizing the defensive backs behind them and the linemen crouched in front.

Walters called Jenkins a “bright individual,” and said he knew his newest linebacker would excel with communication. Being front and center has allowed Jenkins plenty of opportunity for growth in a leadership role.

“Just with my communication skills,” Jenkins said. “Like getting the defense lined up, getting the players together, making sure everybody’s on the same page, not having no egos, making sure we fit together on this team.”

Jenkins has taken up his new post at an interesting time; rules now allow one player on each side of the ball to have a direct line of communication with a coach on the sideline via an in-helmet radio device.

Kane said the helmet chips have “forced” the sometimes laconic Jenkins to become a better communicator.

“And there’s little tips you can give along the way that will help that guy play a lot faster than he already does,” Kane said.

The flow of Purdue’s season opener against Indiana State will dictate plenty of how the helmet coms are used, Kane said, and there is a plan B in place in case of malfunctions.

The test on Saturday will be one that to this point Jenkins has merely studied for.

“It’s here now,” Jenkins said with a grin. “So I’m ready.”