Channing Tindall – April 29, 2022
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Friday, April 29, 2022
LB Channing Tindall
(It was reported that you had a pre-draft visit with the Dolphins a couple of weeks ago. How did that visit go and did you leave with a sense that you might be coming back to Miami?) – “I did go down there, and when I went down there, I just loved the campus and the facility they had there. I just really got in with the linebackers coaches. I talked to the whole staff and I felt like home, honestly, when I was there.”
(What did you learn about this defense that you think will make you fit in so well?) – “The way they use their linebackers is different. They use their linebackers everywhere. They put them on the edge sometimes, they put them on the line, they put them at Mike, Will. They are very versatile and I feel like I fit into it.”
(How much fun was it playing on that defense last year, and on the flip side of that, was there a little bit of concern of getting lost because you guys had so many elite players? You guys had five players taken in the first round from just that one defense.) – “It was so fun playing on that defense. We just came in and all of those people are my brothers. We did these things called skull sessions in the beginning of the year. We were just talking about each other’s why and our backgrounds. I can tell you about each of my teammates and they can tell you about my why. Just that connection we had is something that I’m going to miss.”
(Was there a worry that as a prospect heading into the draft, you could get lost a little bit playing around so many high-profile prospects?) – “No, I didn’t feel that way. I’m a big believer in just God’s plan and what comes is supposed to happen. I just put it all in God’s hands and hope for the best.”
(I wanted to ask if you have any memories about the level of competition on that defense that you guys endured all season. I’m sure you guys competed every single day. And how do you think that prepared you for the next level?) – “Just coming in there – it’s very business-like at Georgia. Just coming in there and seeing the culture that was already built there before I got there, like in fall camp. My first fall camp, I caught a full body cramp and I was looking at the ceiling like ‘wow, this is college.’ With the culture that was already built there and everything that was going on, I just felt like it prepared me.”
(I noticed looking at your statistics that you made a big jump this year – an increase in tackles, an increase in tackles for loss, an increase in sacks. Without having watched all of the games, can you fill me in on what changed?) – “Coach (Glenn) Schumann. who was my position coach at Georgia, I just took extra time and watched film with him. I feel like I knew what I had to do. I was on a mission before the season started. I was just on a mission, like I have to get this done. I would say the biggest thing is probably just my mindset. My mindset was do or die.”
(What were your conversations like with head coach Mike McDaniel and all of the coaches that you met during your visit? What did they like about you? What was their interest in what you bring to the field?) – “They like me for my versatility and I feel like that’s the reason why. That’s the main reason. Just like I was saying earlier, where they put their linebackers at – just Miami as a whole, where they put their linebackers, their linebackers do it all. I feel like I fit into that.”
(That pre-draft visit wasn’t the first time you’d come to Miami. You played at Hard Rock stadium in the Orange Bowl in the College Football Playoff semifinal win against Michigan. What were your impressions of playing in that stadium? What do you think it would be like playing there as a pro?) – “It was a beautiful stadium. I’m from South Carolina and it’s humid down here, too. But man, during pregame, it was very humid that day before we went out on t the field. From then, as the game continued and everything, you could look up and it’s outside but it’s in a dome. It’s just very beautiful.”
(I’m curious where you are, who you are with and what was your reaction when you got the call tonight?) – “I’m with my close friends and family. My mother, my cousins, my best friends. They are all here right now. Real exclusive. They are all really happy. It’s a very emotional day.”
(A few minutes ago, you mentioned that going into the season, you were on a mission and you had to get this done. What exactly was your goal? Was it to be drafted like you are tonight? Was it to earn a starting job? Or was it something else?) – “I felt like the biggest thing is I wanted to be the best version of me. I knew I wasn’t doing everything I could to be the best version of me. So when it came down to it, I was like this season I can’t just wait. It needs to happen now to be the best version of me and I need to continue on it. Like what am I waiting for or pausing on? We all say we know what we need to do better, or from a standpoint of know what it is you have to do to be better and work on it. This season was my year where I was like from here on out, the sky is the limit and I’m trying to go as high as I can in anything I do, even outside of football.”
(I’m curious rather you had any prior connection to anybody on the Dolphins other than G Solomon Kindley, with whom you played at Georgia.) – “I know Jevon Holland pretty well.”
(Where did you guys first meet?) – “I met Jevon at the Nike Opening event a long time ago. We are all pretty cool.”
(Were you named after anybody?) – “I was named after my father’s best friend that served in the military who died.”
(I saw you ran a 4.47 40-yard dash. I also have read you described as tough. Tell me how you’re able to approach both a speed mindset and a hitting mindset.) – “I feel like they go hand-in-hand, especially being a linebacker. I feel like every good linebacker, and any linebacker honestly in the league, they are running fast and they are hitting. So just coming with speed, you are ready to hit something. You’ve got to be tough to play linebacker. You cannot be a linebacker and not be tough.”
