The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/873137
OCTOBER 2017 THE WOLVERINE 37 He has to take on the role of making sure there are no blown assignments, missed assignments, and he has to go out and execute his assignment. If he can do that, it will make his job a lot easier and it will make the guys around him a lot better. "He has to understand what the call is. He has to understand forma- tion, down and distance, the defen- sive call. He has to put Don Brown's brain in his brain." Ray recalled a situation in 1997 when he instructed Charles Wood- son to jump a particular pass route at Michigan State, because he'd seen it on film and earlier in the game. Reading the formation and making the communication led to a pick- off, one of Michigan's six that day against the Spartans. That's the sort of awareness Kinnel needs to show in the weeks to come, Ray stressed. "Tyree has to be able to take a snapshot of what has happened pre- viously in the game, or with what he saw on film, and then be able to tell guys around him and basically predict what's going to happen," Ray said. "That's how you make the guys around you better." At the same time, the former U-M safety noted, Kinnel has to himself perform at a high level. "He has to get about six or seven interceptions," Ray said. "He has to be the enforcer, the guy who makes a big hit whenever it's necessary. He has to be emotional, vocal. He basi- cally has to be a complete safety. "He has to cover in man, zone, be a great open-field tackler, get guys lined up. He has to be a guy that can encourage the younger players when they get beat, to shake it off and keep moving. "I don't think he even understands his role and how critical it is at that position in this system. His job is big. I do think he has the capabilities to carry the bulk of that load." EMBRACING THE CHALLENGE Kinnel himself doesn't shy from any of that. He came away from the opener feeling extremely confident about Michigan's communication — in the secondary, with the front seven and with the coaches. Nothing about his first game left him with any wariness over what's to come. "I actually did feel comfortable," he said. "We were all talking after the game and felt pretty comfort- able throughout the game. We were telling each other this is pretty easy, because of the way they work us in practice. We felt pretty good about that." Then came the friendly confines of Michigan Stadium and a very differ- ent feeling, running onto the field as a starter. Kinnel has always appre- ciated Michigan's game-day atmo- sphere, but now it precedes a fuller afternoon of work. Either way, he assured, the sensa- tion is glorious. "It's one of my favorite parts about Saturdays, hitting that banner and running out there with all the emo- tions flying through your head and body," Kinnel said. "You're just ready to get out there on the field. You hear that marching band, you run right through them touching the banner and look into the stands right before you play and see everyone go crazy, it's a great atmosphere and it's exciting." He'll be doing so Nov. 25 against a team from his home state. Don't think for a second he hasn't thought about it, even if he doesn't want to talk about it much … yet. "Being an Ohio guy, it can be tough at times, going back home," he said. "You have friends and family talk a little crap to you. But I'm glad to be at Michigan. It's where I want to be. "I want to get them bad. But I just want to focus on the season. They're definitely in the back of my head. A lot of us here, we want to get them. That's a goal of ours. We'll get there in November." It all comes in stages, and a couple of the bigger stages are already in the rearview mirror. ❏ Kinnel was named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week for his performance against Cincinnati that included his first career sack and interception, plus a team-high nine stops. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN