Michigan Wolverines Football: Chris Hinton Ready To Do More
Michigan sophomore tackle and former five-star Chris Hinton played 29 snaps in U-M’s 49-24 blowout of Minnesota Saturday, but he wasn’t completely satisfied with his play. He graded out at 61 percent on PFF.com and didn’t notch a tackle, though he generally held his ground against the Gophers’ big line.
There have been several questions and concerns about the Wolverines’ interior defensive line, and there still are after the victory. For Hinton, however, his first start was just the beginning.
“I’m my biggest critic, so I never feel like I play well,” Hinton said. “There’s always room for improvement; always room for improvement. It’s a great starting block, and I’m just ready to do my part.”
The biggest difference from last year, he continued — he felt like he belonged on the field.
“Confidence is one of the largest things I’ve seen myself grow from last year to this year,” he said. “I played in a couple games last year, a couple big games, but I just felt my confidence on a different level this year; just confident in my ability, confident in my preparation, things like that. It just helped me play more loose and play more freely, like I did on Saturday.
“The most important thing … it's just a different mindset. Going from your freshman and sophomore year, having had some experience in my freshman year, I'm taking that experience and running with it … just taking your game to the next level.”
Playing in front of no fans was a different experience for all the Wolverines Saturday night, and Hinton was no exception. It will be no different Saturday in Ann Arbor. His first start against Michigan State will be in a largely empty Michigan Stadium, only immediate family and a few photographers present in addition to the players and coaches.
There will be no roar when they take the field, probably no ‘Go Blue’ banner to touch. None of that, though, matters to Hinton.
“I’m just excited to get back on the home field,” he said. “No fans, but it's still going to feel like a home game put on for the for the University of Michigan in the Big House. It’s going to be exciting to be back in the Big House. It's still going to be electric, the first time back in and since last year, so just decided to get back and compete in the big house again soon.”
That it’s against MSU isn’t lost on him. The Spartans looked like the Big Ten’s worst team in a home loss to Rutgers, but Hinton and the Wolverines aren’t taking them for granted.
“Obviously, it's a huge rivalry, a huge game. I'm just excited to be in a great atmosphere going up against a very competitive team,” Hinton said. “That … is one of the best rivalries, and I'm ready to compete in it and just give it my all.
“It's college football. Everyone's good, so you’ve got to go into every game with the clear mind. Anyone can get beat any Saturday, but we're going to prepare hard, practice hard and we're going into Saturday totally prepared. We can't overlook any of our opponents, regardless of what they did last week, because they're a good football team.”
But his team is good too, Hinton said, and he’s glad to be a part of it. The former five-star could have gone just about anywhere in the country, but he’s happy to be a Wolverine.
“I was always brought up education first, because football won’t last you very long,” Hinton said. “In my [recruitment], when I was looking at schools, you had schools, certain schools, great football, always top five every year, but when you look at the academic side, they’re far, far down the totem pole. Then you’ve got schools that have great academics, but they don’t compete on the field every year.
“When you look at Michigan, I honestly feel like it’s one of the only few schools that honestly have a great balance of academics and football. Also, the kids on the team are very like-minded. I saw myself in a lot of the kids here and I feel great about my choice coming here.”
Now he hopes to take his game to the next level to prove to his coaches they were justified in their pursuit.
He appears to be on his way.
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