FORT COLLINS, Colo.— As Marvin Kinsey sat at the podium on Monday, the senior running back smiled and addressed each question with enthusiasm.
A one-time freshman phenom turned into the forgotten man in the backfield over the last few seasons, Kinsey is aiming to prove he’s matured—the eccentric athlete knows that his dreams of playing in the NFL hinge on a successful season and is approaching each day with a new sense of purpose.
“The clock is ticking,” Kinsey said after Monday’s practice. “It’s your last chance to prove what you’ve got. I want to go to the league, so it’s my last chance to prove to everyone that I can do it.”
At the beginning of fall camp, Kinsey told BSN Rams that in order to become a player that head coach Mike Bobo can truly rely on in games, he would have to elevate the way that he practices and prove he’s up to the task.
“I need to get out of my head and not think that I know everything,” a candid Kinsey told BSN Rams in early August. “I think if it falls into place, then I’ll be the guy.”
The Ram faithful know just how explosive Kinsey can be—as a true freshman, Kinsey rushed for 546 total yards and seven touchdowns on only 93 carries. Unfortunately, since tearing his ACL at the end of the 2016 season, Kinsey has recorded just 383 rushing yards and four touchdowns over the last two years.
Having to come back from the knee injury and playing behind veterans, Dalyn Dawkins and Izzy Matthews, certainly impacted Kinsey’s ability to get on the field, especially in 2017.
In 2018, though, Kinsey totaled just 63 carries in nine games. In his defense, the offensive line didn’t exactly thrive with the ground-game and CSU really struggled to run the football as a whole. But a big part of the reason why Kinsey was on the sidelines was that he seemed to always find himself in Bobo’s doghouse.
“I went into a dark place at that time because I went from being the guy to not the guy,” Kinsey said. “It was really hard, but that taught me a lot.”
Kinsey went on to explain how that after bursting out onto the scene in 2016, the last two seasons tested him and he didn’t always handle things well. However, 2019 was going to be a different story, Kinsey said. Both on the field and off the field, Kinsey wanted to demonstrate his new sense of maturity.
Now, just 12 days from the season opener against Colorado, Kinsey seems to be practicing what he preached on Media Day. Throughout fall camp, Bobo has consistently praised Kinsey for his efforts on the practice field and in both of the team’s scrimmages so far, No. 5 has been able to break off a long touchdown run.
“I thought Marvin Kinsey ran extremely hard,” Bobo told reporters Friday night.
On Monday, Kinsey explained that he’s been a much more coachable running back and it’s paying off for him on the gridiron. By going into the offices and working with the coaches on the finer details, he’s not only getting a deeper understanding of what he’s doing well and what he needs to improve on—but Kinsey is also showing he will do whatever is necessary to stay on the field.
“I’m not trying to go in his (dog)house—when you get in his house, you’re not coming out—and that means you’re on the sidelines,” Kinsey said.
If Kinsey can manage to stay healthy and in the good graces of the coaching staff, the only player to ever have his jersey retired by Riverwood High School (Atlanta, Ga.), could potentially be a huge boost to the offense. Even in an extremely limited role last season, Kinsey still managed to average 5.4 yards per carry. One thing is certain, though, and it’s that Kinsey’s confidence is through the roof.
“I feel like, after my injury, people said that I slacked off like I wasn’t the same,” Kinsey said. “But since I’ve got bigger, I’ve got stronger, I’ve got faster—I feel like I’m Marvin times 10.”
