John Jenkins was the head coach of the now defunct Ottawa Renegades of the Canadian Football League. While he was introduced as the team's new coach, Jenkins along with newly named General Manager Forrest Gregg, never got a chance to field a team as the CFL suspended the team's operations shortly after they were signed by owners Bernard and Lonnie Glieberman.

He was also head coach at the University of Houston from 1990 to 1992. Jenkins was a proponent of the run and shoot offensive scheme. He used this offense while being the offensive coordinator for the USFL's Houston Gamblers and the Toronto Argonauts.

Jenkins coaching career began in earnest as a coach of the Texarkana, Arkansas High Razorbacks. Jenkins played college football at the University of Arkansas. He was a special teams coach for the University of Southern Mississippi in the early eighties. He briefly coached the Arena Football League's Arkansas Twisters as well as the Ottawa Renegades of the CFL.