Photo courtesy of Grace Beal/Daily
It is hard to believe that Mike Sainristil is a fifth year senior at Michigan. It does not seem like it was that long ago that he was making plays for Everett High School and competing for state championships in Massachusetts. Now, Sainristil is competing for a national championship on the biggest stage in college football. Tonight, he will have an opportunity to help deliver a national championship to Michigan, something that has not been done in 26 years.
Sainristil met with the media this weekend and reflected on his time with the Maize and Blue, his 2020 injury and what it would mean to bring a national championship to Ann Arbor.
“It feels good. It’s what you work for. I’m pretty sure every college football team in the off-season tells themselves that, you know, I believe we are good enough to win a National Championship. The difference is the work that you put in every single day; it’s the consistency that you have throughout the off-season, throughout the season. It’s the sacrifices you make, and that’s what we have done. We have sacrificed. We have put the hours in, the time in, film study, work in the weight room and we have just dedicated this season to winning a National Championship. We have trusted in each other. We believed in each other. We believed in our coaches and I believe that when you have a team that has those two things where you love each other as a team, you love your coaches, then you could end up in a position like this.”
Sainristil has emerged as one of the leaders of the Michigan Football program both on and off the field. Part of the reason is his selflessness. He arrived in 2019 as a wide receiver but when the team needed defensive backs two years ago, Sainristil moved to the defensive side of the ball and in the process made himself one of the top defensive backs in the nation. The move to the defensive side of the ball has been seamless for Sainristil.
“I would just say it helps with being able to anticipate, knowing down and distances, knowing tendencies. Coming from the receiver side, understanding what receivers may like when a corner is pressed or a corner is off. I think me being able to bring that to the defensive side of the ball allows me to see things, and not guess, but like I said, anticipate. And of course, knowing my game plan, knowing where I’m supposed to be what spots I’m supposed to be in, my zone drives, understanding my leverage in man, definitely helps me eliminate certain things.”
Sainristil’s development as a defensive back is a testament to his hard work and his work ethic as a whole. It also speaks to his love for football and his attention to detail. It is more than just what you do on the field.
“I feel like when you’re able to develop, development isn’t just what you do on the field. It’s how well you know the game. Your knowledge of football, and I think when you have a bunch of guys who know football very well, it creates a very good football team and not because they are just super talented. It’s because they know what they are doing out there. They could be on-field coaches and I feel like that’s what we have a lot of here.”
Sainristil is not the wide eyed kid from Everett that he was when he first arrived on campus. He has a college degree now and he will soon be a dad. The responsibility of being a father is not lost on him. The responsibility also motivates him on the football field.
“I know it gives me extra reason to want to be great. Gives me extra motivation knowing I have a little person, a little person on the way. Definitely super excited to be a father. I can’t wait. I’ve seen so many great fathers around me, so many great examples of fathers. I just know how special it is to have a child of your own. So I’m definitely excited to do everything I can to give my little girl the best life possible.”
Come Monday night, Sainristil will play his final game for the Wolverines and like always, he will leave it all on the field. He knows his teammates will do the same for him.
“I would just say it comes down to making sure you don’t leave anything up to — don’t have any regrets when this is over. You definitely want to pour everything you have, empty your tank. That’s one of the things I’ve been saying to the guys is there’s nothing else after this; what wouldn’t you do. That was a message Will Johnson said, Coach Minter said. What would you do up to this point. We’re here now. Like find any and everything you can to help us accomplish our goal, and just leave it all out there come Monday.”
If there is one thing we know about Mike Sainristil, he will lead leave it all out there tonight and do everything possible to help his team win a national championship. He will once again lead the way for the Wolverines.