Speaker 1: Factors, throw offers, factor drawing, high Parkard touchdown. What a
Speaker 1: win for this Miami Dolphin team. Wow? What is up? Dolphins?
Speaker 1: And welcome to the Drivetime Podcast, part of the Miami
Speaker 1: Dolphins official podcast network covering your Miami Dolphins. I am
Speaker 1: your host, Travis Wingfield, and I am here to bring
Speaker 1: you your daily dose of Miami Dolphins football. We are
Speaker 1: joined by a very very special guest number ninety four,
Speaker 1: Christian Wilkins. And let's not waste any more time on
Speaker 1: this podcast. Let's jump right into the interview for this Friday,
Speaker 1: March the sixth edition of the Drivetime Podcast. Wilkins, that's good.
Speaker 1: Come on, then you can expand and make a point. Wilkins.
Speaker 1: Wilkis textbook defens twitch to rock actor Roger Wilkins. Christian
Speaker 1: Wilkins start back as quite well and I'm thrilled to
Speaker 1: be joined now by the leader and tackles among all
Speaker 1: rookie defensive tackles in twenty nineteen. He played all sixteen games,
Speaker 1: started fourteen of them, and played a whopping seven hundred
Speaker 1: and twenty nine snaps As a rookie. He was the
Speaker 1: thirteenth overall pick in the twenty nineteen draft. He is
Speaker 1: Christian Wilkins. Christian, welcome in. Thanks for doing this, man, Hey,
Speaker 1: I appreciate it, so thank you for having me. Yeah,
Speaker 1: and it's no problem. May. And first of all, how
Speaker 1: are you feeling. It's your first full offseason here as
Speaker 1: a professional. How's the mind, body and spirit working for
Speaker 1: you this March? Oh, well, good question. I'm definitely getting
Speaker 1: all that back. You know, during the season, they could
Speaker 1: get so busy, so hectic, and you know, it's it's
Speaker 1: a challenge to play sixteen games and you know, and
Speaker 1: it was a new adjustment for me and everything like that.
Speaker 1: So I'm definitely enjoying my first off season and I
Speaker 1: never had this much time on so it's good. I'm
Speaker 1: gonna joining it. I definitely still saying I'm locked in
Speaker 1: and focus on trying to you know, train my body
Speaker 1: and get ready for years for being year two coming up.
Speaker 1: And you also had plenty of long seasons there at Clemson,
Speaker 1: and I was always curious to ask guys in your
Speaker 1: position this question. The length of a rookie season one
Speaker 1: starts out with the combine, then you go into your
Speaker 1: pro day, and then you get drafted. Then rookie mini camps.
Speaker 1: It's like you don't have a any time off whatsoever.
Speaker 1: Do you feel that grind late in the season, your
Speaker 1: rookie year, I feel like it could definitely pile up
Speaker 1: and and at all. That's why a lot of people
Speaker 1: talk about the rookie wall, and I feel like that's
Speaker 1: a that's definitely a real thing for most guys. There
Speaker 1: comes a point in the season where you just like, uh,
Speaker 1: you know, you might be mentally into it, but your
Speaker 1: body just can't do what you you know, what it
Speaker 1: what it needs to do. Or you might be physically
Speaker 1: feel good, but just mentally you're just so drained. Uh
Speaker 1: you know. So I definitely feel like the likes of
Speaker 1: the niflus because this for rookies and stuff, because like
Speaker 1: you said, it starts almost immediately after after year, you know,
Speaker 1: last year of football and college. Uh you know, you
Speaker 1: go through training, you know, through a mini camp to
Speaker 1: go through you got a train all through the off
Speaker 1: season and everything, and then the seasons asturing melong. So's
Speaker 1: it's a bit of a challenge and you know, but
Speaker 1: it's it's a bit of a justment player. Uh, you know,
Speaker 1: I'm definitely excited now that I'm you know I'm no
Speaker 1: longer a rookie, and I get to, you know, prepare
Speaker 1: for that the right way coming in the year too.
Speaker 1: One of the things that Brian Flores and Chris Career
Speaker 1: and pretty much everybody associated with the Miami Dolphins operations
Speaker 1: said about drafting you was both your on field prowess
Speaker 1: but also you're off the field acumen and personality and
Speaker 1: what you bring to this organization as a leader and
Speaker 1: as a personality. And we saw that last weekend, Christian
Speaker 1: when you participated in your first Dolphins Cancer Challenge and
Speaker 1: you won first place in your own race. So I
Speaker 1: gotta ask you how extensive, how extensive is your cycling history?
Speaker 1: Was that your first time on a bike or have
Speaker 1: you have you done that before? H No. I actually
Speaker 1: love riding bikes and trying to get on as mother
Speaker 1: as I can and everything. Every since I was a kid.
Speaker 1: I always just loved riding bikes. It was kind of
Speaker 1: just you know, like when you're a kid, that's your
Speaker 1: first like sense of freedom a little bit, you know
Speaker 1: what I mean, Like you you're on your bike, get George,
Speaker 1: you can go around and go wherever you want. Kind
Speaker 1: of So I've always enjoyed, loveing, uh, enjoying the love
Speaker 1: riding bikes. Um, so as soon as they told me
Speaker 1: that one it was for a good cause, and I
Speaker 1: get the opportentities just drop my bike, you know, you
Speaker 1: know for such a great Collins I was next time
Speaker 1: yet by the way, um and you know, I've never
Speaker 1: I've never wrote thirty one miles before in my life,
Speaker 1: but uh, you know I got it done. Uh, Doug
Speaker 1: deep and was and was able to find a way
Speaker 1: to push through. But that was definitely an awesome experience
Speaker 1: at this cause. And I'm always down to uh you know,
Speaker 1: trying to be a leader in the community as well
Speaker 1: as on the field. But you know I'm in the
Speaker 1: community is importing too, because this is this is I'll
Speaker 1: take pie in Miami now this is my city. Uh
Speaker 1: you know, I just take a lot of pie and
Speaker 1: then just getting comfortable and just long loan a lot
Speaker 1: of people and just get my face out there. We
Speaker 1: we love to hear that on three or five day
Speaker 1: especially here to talking to Christian Wilkins here on the
Speaker 1: Drivetime podcast March the sixth, talking to him in March
Speaker 1: the fifth. Right now, though, I gotta ask you, Christian you,
Speaker 1: John Jenkins, Ray Kawa, McMillan, plenty of guys out there.
Speaker 1: Who made the cyclist suit? Is that what it's called,
Speaker 1: the uniform that you wear when you're on a bike?
Speaker 1: Who made that suit look best? Besides you? Of course?
Speaker 1: I mean, I mean, I would like to say me,
Speaker 1: even though it was a little tight and I'm I'm
Speaker 1: a little too big to be having that much tightness song,
Speaker 1: but I would say I would have to give it
Speaker 1: to Ray Kwan. It's not me because he didn't get
Speaker 1: anything else under race. He came in like dead last.
Speaker 1: We all sat at the same time. He finished twenty
Speaker 1: minutes behind all of us. So I'll give him, you know,
Speaker 1: at least give him that he at least look good
Speaker 1: when you know, from the crossing the finish line, he
Speaker 1: looked solid. So i'll give him that. You mentioned thirty
Speaker 1: one miles. I saw Ray Kwana mentioned they were supposed
Speaker 1: to go twenty five and there was some kind of
Speaker 1: detour that made you go further. Was that was that
Speaker 1: the case? That's that's right. Yeah, So when I originally
Speaker 1: signed a BIS sign up for twenty five miles and
Speaker 1: then the detour made the thirty one, so I was like, well,
Speaker 1: I guess you just gotta jump from the fly. It's
Speaker 1: kind of like, you know, you're just taking rom with
Speaker 1: It's just like a football. He just gotta just just
Speaker 1: as you do. You know, you got a game plan
Speaker 1: and then you can switch it up sometimes. Okay, we're
Speaker 1: gonna get to some football here in just one second,
Speaker 1: but I have one more other sport question for you.
Speaker 1: We posted your high school basketball highlights on the Miami
Speaker 1: Dolphins official Twitter account, and first of all, Man, you
Speaker 1: love that drop step. I see you work in that
Speaker 1: thing every single play, it seems like. But I gotta
Speaker 1: ask you, who's the best Cooper on this team? Who's
Speaker 1: the best basketball player on the team? Christian, Oh, it's me.
Speaker 1: I feel like I feel like, skill set wise, I
Speaker 1: might not be the best skill set wise basketball player.
Speaker 1: Like there's other guys who can shoot who look more
Speaker 1: like the typical basketball players, you know, uh, taller, skinnier.
Speaker 1: You know you've got a couple of those guys. But
Speaker 1: when it comes to just getting it done and getting
Speaker 1: the job done and executing and winning, I think I
Speaker 1: give that. I would you know I can do that
Speaker 1: guss out of anyone else on the team. So uh,
Speaker 1: you know, I know they posted another guy's stuff from
Speaker 1: what they can do with all their prisses too. But
Speaker 1: when it comes down to it, just get getting a
Speaker 1: bucket and getting it done. You know, I'll get it done.
Speaker 1: You know, it just might not be as pretty as
Speaker 1: some of the other guys on the team. Well, it
Speaker 1: definitely shows off your athleticism. And I want to talk
Speaker 1: a little bit here, Christian about playing for Brian Flores
Speaker 1: and also Mary and Hobby. You're posession coach. You were
Speaker 1: recruited by Marry and Hobby and played for him at Clemson.
Speaker 1: Can you talk about your time with him at Clemson
Speaker 1: and the transition to working for him as a pro,
Speaker 1: And then also we'll talk about Brian Flores as well.
Speaker 1: Oh well, um no, it's definitely it's definitely been a
Speaker 1: blessing to have a coach Hobby around because it's just
Speaker 1: you know, he's known me since I was the sixteen
Speaker 1: sixty year old kids pretty much, and you know now
Speaker 1: that I'm twenty twenty four years old, you know, we've
Speaker 1: had a long relationship and there's just you know, there's
Speaker 1: just a level of expectations from both of us. I
Speaker 1: know what I'm gonna get from him another coach, and
Speaker 1: I know and he knows who's gonna get from me
Speaker 1: as a player. So you know, when either when either
Speaker 1: of us aren't reaching our standards as a culture or
Speaker 1: the player, you know Woods Woods is, which is very
Speaker 1: few times. You know, it's just good that we have
Speaker 1: each other, the challenge each other. Um, he gets the
Speaker 1: best out of each other. And it's it's important to
Speaker 1: always have that kind of relationship with here, Uh, with
Speaker 1: your coach. And I just got a lot of respect
Speaker 1: to CoA child because he's been allowed for a while. Uh,
Speaker 1: coach a lot of great guys and uh, you know,
Speaker 1: he said threw himself and I'm just you know, expect
Speaker 1: and most other players. And that's what you want. You
Speaker 1: want that type of coach. He's gonna be commanding. Um,
Speaker 1: you know. But it's all you know, it's all you
Speaker 1: know for your best interests and for you to be great.
Speaker 1: And what was your biggest takeaway from year one playing
Speaker 1: under Brian Flores the strong finish of the season. What
Speaker 1: did you take away from playing for coach Flores throughout
Speaker 1: the course of twenty nineteen, Well, I just love it's
Speaker 1: all over our mindset and approach to not only the
Speaker 1: game of football, but just to a game of life. Uh.
Speaker 1: He's a coach. He always just has a chip on
Speaker 1: his shoulder. Uh. He's never satisfied with anything, whether it's
Speaker 1: on our outhatility always looking for ways that he can
Speaker 1: do better and improve. And I feel like we as
Speaker 1: players and we as an organization kind of sept out
Speaker 1: to that mindset. Uh, you know, just being a tough
Speaker 1: physical discipline, you know, and all that we do. Um,
Speaker 1: you know, just being smart and just and just getting
Speaker 1: it done and get pushing ourselves to the limits. And also,
Speaker 1: you know, just never being satisfied and always having to
Speaker 1: check no matter their money success you had. You know,
Speaker 1: that's that's in the past. You're always looking at which
Speaker 1: which board and um, you know that's and I love
Speaker 1: having him as a coach. He's not gonna eat the
Speaker 1: same thing like kind of what I was explaining about,
Speaker 1: how because he's very demanding. He expected the most un
Speaker 1: of his players, Um, you know, and and you know
Speaker 1: it just works for him. You know, a lot of
Speaker 1: guys got to respect. And I'm comproving by then on
Speaker 1: him and his philosophy. And you know, I'm sure your
Speaker 1: best to be selected here as the Dolphin, and you know,
Speaker 1: I'm glad to see what's supposed to come in the future.
Speaker 1: I think one thing that Dolphins fans are most proud
Speaker 1: of U last year's team was the way you guys
Speaker 1: battle laid down the stretch and stayed in it and
Speaker 1: won so many games there late in the year, finishing
Speaker 1: five before you'd beat two division or two division winners,
Speaker 1: i should say, and you won three games as double
Speaker 1: digit underdogs. What does that type of momentum or success
Speaker 1: help you to carry into this offseason and into as well. Well.
Speaker 1: I mean, we can't go off a last year's success
Speaker 1: or anything, but it's definitely like it was. It was
Speaker 1: important that we ended the season that way, and uh,
Speaker 1: you know, it just definitely was a little encouraging, especially
Speaker 1: having to deal with you know, the outside is on
Speaker 1: the outside, no it's out and people are not believing
Speaker 1: in us. Uh, And it was just important to see
Speaker 1: that the couple of guys that we had in on
Speaker 1: locker room, that big focus, you know, kept a good
Speaker 1: positive energy around the building. I was staying locked him
Speaker 1: all year long, and it was good that we were
Speaker 1: able at least reach some from some rewards, you know,
Speaker 1: and uh, you know, so that was that was definitely
Speaker 1: a great feeling to get a few wins. But you
Speaker 1: can't carry that in the next season. You know, you
Speaker 1: gotta start to over completely. You know, I can do
Speaker 1: guys in the build and uh, you know, be a
Speaker 1: new team. So we gotta just do it. I'll start
Speaker 1: all over again, create the right mindset and move forward.
Speaker 1: We've got Christian Wilkins hearing the Drivetime podcast on the
Speaker 1: official Miami Dolphins podcast network. Christian, we talked a lot
Speaker 1: about the Dolphins cancer Challenge, some team accomplishments. What about
Speaker 1: for you individually, what's one area of your game that
Speaker 1: you felt like really shine through in your rookie season.
Speaker 1: I just I just felt like my ability to play
Speaker 1: with high effort and the motor um. That's what I
Speaker 1: problem myself on, especially as a big guy, because I
Speaker 1: feel like, I know, disrespect to other big guys around
Speaker 1: in the league or you know, uh, you know, it's
Speaker 1: just tough being three in the pounds and you know,
Speaker 1: playing with such high effort and energy. Um, And you know,
Speaker 1: that's something I just had to problem myself on that. Uh,
Speaker 1: you know, someone may be better than me. I might
Speaker 1: be better than some players, but with they're not gonna
Speaker 1: be able to to uh you know, to say that
Speaker 1: they you gonna get a completely outwork. I just always
Speaker 1: trying to tell myself on being like a hard worker,
Speaker 1: run into the ball. Uh, you know, just playing, you know,
Speaker 1: just trying to uh, you know, give every play, you know,
Speaker 1: give everything, need my best on every play, regardless of
Speaker 1: how tire and now emerging like that and decide for
Speaker 1: like I just was able to show that, um and
Speaker 1: just you know, so I flashed that time to just
Speaker 1: show my ability to stop the one, get after the
Speaker 1: pastor and things like that. Um, you know, I'm just
Speaker 1: looking forward to making that more consistent. Uh. And we
Speaker 1: talked about the seven D twenty nine snaps you played
Speaker 1: last season as a rookie, a whole bunch, especially like
Speaker 1: you mentioned, for a guy of your size in that position,
Speaker 1: played a lot of one tech, played some three tech.
Speaker 1: You even kicked out why is a five technique? And
Speaker 1: some of those odd fronts. Is that something you're used
Speaker 1: to uncomfortable with? Yes, I love I love that, and
Speaker 1: I feel like that's a you know, uh and and
Speaker 1: it works well on our defense because they're pretty versatile
Speaker 1: as a defense. So it's it's good that when you know,
Speaker 1: when you can kick down to a five plat me
Speaker 1: at three or four, I shade and zero, um, you know.
Speaker 1: And I try to puind myself and being a versatile
Speaker 1: player because it's always the best with the more you
Speaker 1: can do, uh, you know, the longer you tend to
Speaker 1: last U in the in, the more value you have.
Speaker 1: So I try to pind myself on that and being
Speaker 1: able to play a bunch of different positions across the
Speaker 1: line of scrimage um, you know, and even you know,
Speaker 1: even playing some positions like running back or receiver. You know,
Speaker 1: I got to get a catch this year too, which
Speaker 1: is pretty awesome. But I definitely take a lot of
Speaker 1: pride in that UM and you know, definitely trying to
Speaker 1: improve on that as as a play as overall player. Well,
Speaker 1: I want to talk to you about that catch, because
Speaker 1: that's all my list of questions for you. Here, We're
Speaker 1: gonna circle around this question I had for you and
Speaker 1: ask you what what's the feeling like for Christian Wilkins
Speaker 1: when the play call comes in there calling for the
Speaker 1: heavy package, but we want forty two at fullback? And
Speaker 1: the run of the flat route to Christian Wilkins. What's
Speaker 1: your thought process when that call comes in? Oh? My
Speaker 1: thought process, this go time. It's money time. Getting the
Speaker 1: ends on by all means, by by any means necessary. Um,
Speaker 1: you know. And it was close. It was close for me,
Speaker 1: but I got it it. I got in there by
Speaker 1: any means necessary. So, um, you know, it was good.
Speaker 1: It was a good sided feeling. And in the moment
Speaker 1: you try to stay really locked in look because you
Speaker 1: don't want to get too excited because then that's when
Speaker 1: I feel you're gonna mess up. So you gotta try
Speaker 1: to like just stay lot good as much as possible.
Speaker 1: And then you know, after you execute the play, and
Speaker 1: that's where you just let all the emotion out and
Speaker 1: celebrate and have a good time. And that's that's kind
Speaker 1: of what I did. So so we talked about your
Speaker 1: basketball career. And sometimes guys will stat pad. They'll throw
Speaker 1: the ball off the backboard, get an extra rebound in there,
Speaker 1: and then flush it. Is that what you were doing
Speaker 1: with the fumbel on the goal one? They're trying to
Speaker 1: pad your fumbel recovery stats? Oh no, no, I thought
Speaker 1: I got in on the first tie, just staying uh
Speaker 1: but uh no. I really just tried to make it
Speaker 1: look cool with the with the one hand and left
Speaker 1: hand and catch. I tried. I tried to make it
Speaker 1: look good, but then I got humbled really quick. The
Speaker 1: ball came loose, but it was good. I was able
Speaker 1: to I was able to jump on me. Yeah. I
Speaker 1: think if they would have gone through review, you would
Speaker 1: have gotten the initial touchdown first, but they just kept
Speaker 1: it there because you fell on the ball anyway. So
Speaker 1: that was my opinion of it. Exactly perfect, exactly. I
Speaker 1: would agree with that. I would agree with that. So
Speaker 1: I want to go back to that Bengals game. That
Speaker 1: was the game where you did catch a touchdown pass
Speaker 1: and you kind of went viral there, I suppose when
Speaker 1: you were miked up for talking a unique brand of
Speaker 1: trash talk. I want to ask you, what's the general
Speaker 1: reaction you get from guys across from you when you
Speaker 1: kill them with kindness like that? Um, I didn't me.
Speaker 1: I just have such an amazing time play in the game.
Speaker 1: I just enjoyed a lot. I have a lot of fun.
Speaker 1: I'm very locked in the series before the game, but
Speaker 1: once the game starts, I'm a little a little a
Speaker 1: little fat eight year o kid. I was, you know,
Speaker 1: a little chevy eight year o kid. I was, you know,
Speaker 1: playing the game that you love, and that that's side
Speaker 1: of me always comes out. So I just like to
Speaker 1: have fun. That's probably other fun and enjoyment of having
Speaker 1: the game just you know, talking trash, but not only
Speaker 1: you know, saying bad things are mean things. It's also
Speaker 1: just kind of like throwing people off of their game
Speaker 1: or just like you know, having them here is something
Speaker 1: that did not used to be hearing during the football game.
Speaker 1: They're like, what are you guys talking about? You know, uh,
Speaker 1: And that's just kind of just the funding in two
Speaker 1: that I enjoy about the game. And you know, I
Speaker 1: have a lot of respect for all the guys in
Speaker 1: the league. To make it to this would be a pro.
Speaker 1: I got a lot of respect for everyone. But you know,
Speaker 1: in between the lines, uh, you know, while we're playing
Speaker 1: on the clock's thinking I'm gonna try to get you
Speaker 1: at your game and talk a little trash, make fun
Speaker 1: of you, make fun of myself. I mean, this is
Speaker 1: and I mean and nobody's safe. Uh, you know, but
Speaker 1: it's all just part of having fun. And then but
Speaker 1: you know, once we get out of the field, once
Speaker 1: the game's over, you know, I'll shake your hands to
Speaker 1: my hand to you because I have, you know, a
Speaker 1: lot of respect to a lot of guys around the league,
Speaker 1: but definitely a lot of those sixty minutes I'm playing,
Speaker 1: I'll touch some trash. So we talked about you scoring
Speaker 1: the touchdown in that game, and you've got to be
Speaker 1: part of the offensive celebration. And I want to talk
Speaker 1: about when the offense scores. When forty two is not
Speaker 1: not forty two, I'm sorry, nine four is not on
Speaker 1: the field, when it's when when it's Preston Williams and
Speaker 1: DeVante Parker and Mike get sicky and then here comes
Speaker 1: ninety four into the into the frame celebrating the touchdown.
Speaker 1: What started that? And kind of what's the motor vacion
Speaker 1: to get down there and celebrate with your boys? Well again,
Speaker 1: I like, like I said, like that stuff, that's kind
Speaker 1: of stuff I've been doing since I was a little
Speaker 1: kid playing the game. And and honestly, I get more
Speaker 1: more joint excitement out of watching my teammates sixte um
Speaker 1: than than myself a lot of the time. Uh, you know,
Speaker 1: because you you just see and how hard guys work,
Speaker 1: you know, and it's not there's nothing to take it
Speaker 1: light of being able to move the ball down the
Speaker 1: field and gonna score a testdown or when you got
Speaker 1: a guy like Galata would rip waffa block and may
Speaker 1: get tackled. It's not just on the testdowns, you know.
Speaker 1: I do it to the guys on the defense, Like
Speaker 1: everybody knows they're on the way from me when they
Speaker 1: make a big play because they know I'm gonna be
Speaker 1: like a great game or something that jump all over you,
Speaker 1: uh you know, and just end up being excited for
Speaker 1: you to behalfy because it's great to see you know,
Speaker 1: all the work you put on it. But then you
Speaker 1: don't have some success and uh you know, you know
Speaker 1: Preeper Year Awards. So I definitely, you know, that's just
Speaker 1: something I've always done since I was a little kid.
Speaker 1: Always try to celebrate with my guys, have fun, have excitement,
Speaker 1: and I feel like it's some textious to uh you know,
Speaker 1: then other guys get excited for everyone else too, um
Speaker 1: and it's just the right mindset and right energy to have.
Speaker 1: Well you use the perfect word. They're infectious across your
Speaker 1: teammates and I can tell you for sure the fan
Speaker 1: base definitely resonates with that infectious energy Christian. They love it.
Speaker 1: I want to ask you one more question about the
Speaker 1: football side here real quick. We talked about you're you're
Speaker 1: doing offseason workouts right now. You talked about some of
Speaker 1: the strengths of your game. What's one area of your
Speaker 1: game that you really want to work on to improve
Speaker 1: next year and you think you can get better at
Speaker 1: in Well, really, I mean I'm never satisfied with anything. Uh,
Speaker 1: you know, I could, I can work on everything, because
Speaker 1: never a part of my game as perfect. So you
Speaker 1: always chop on wood, You're always building a road, you know,
Speaker 1: you're always laying bricks, uh, you know, to try to
Speaker 1: try to complete your game and be the best player
Speaker 1: you could possibly be. But specifically, I would you know,
Speaker 1: just just just standing out low with my pad leverage
Speaker 1: and also just using my hands and being violent with
Speaker 1: my hands as the alignment. Those are two critical things
Speaker 1: that are always no imperative and important. So I feel
Speaker 1: like once you once you at least have that downtack
Speaker 1: with you know, uh, had a good at a good place,
Speaker 1: and you could always be an effective player on no matters.
Speaker 1: You read that whether you're trying to stop the run
Speaker 1: or rush the pastor and Christian. There was a great
Speaker 1: clip of you on the field talking about how thankful
Speaker 1: you are to have this as your job, kind of
Speaker 1: kind of marveling in the fact that this is your
Speaker 1: profession now a football player. And I want to ask
Speaker 1: you about maybe a tougher job you might have had.
Speaker 1: I really resonated with the fact that you did a
Speaker 1: substitute teaching spot or some substitute teaching jobs back in
Speaker 1: your time at Clemson. What can you tell us about
Speaker 1: teaching and what it talk to you about kind of
Speaker 1: being a professional in that regard. Well, yeah, first of all, um,
Speaker 1: you're You're right on point. Like, I'm just so blessed
Speaker 1: to be able to play this game. I mean, it's
Speaker 1: literally a kids game and I get to play it
Speaker 1: as a job, and it's something I love and I'm
Speaker 1: so passionate about and I'm just exchanging best to be
Speaker 1: able to play the game. Um, but it was awesome
Speaker 1: when I was at Clemson to be able to teach, Uh,
Speaker 1: you know, I was able to be the subsetive teacher,
Speaker 1: a pretty much the home spring of my senior senior
Speaker 1: senior year. Um, and it was just it just it
Speaker 1: was it was actually pretty cool to see how many
Speaker 1: of the is gonna learned it in football translated to
Speaker 1: the professional world, uh you know that, which was pretty
Speaker 1: cool to see, just like time management, being organized, having
Speaker 1: a plan, having a routines that come with that, and
Speaker 1: just you know, just trying to be your best because
Speaker 1: other people are counting on you. So that's that was
Speaker 1: kind of like it was pretty cool. But I I
Speaker 1: thought it was important for me, uh to be a
Speaker 1: substitute teacher when I was at Collection, just because one
Speaker 1: of it was it was my senior year. I wanted
Speaker 1: a little extra money, so I was able to do
Speaker 1: that at a job here. So that was cool. And
Speaker 1: I felt like there was also something I'd be good
Speaker 1: at two and it was cool for me. Uh. And
Speaker 1: when I thought the cool the kids, that was pretty
Speaker 1: cool was that, um, when you're when you're a young kid,
Speaker 1: you are just throughout your school career in general, you
Speaker 1: don't typically uh get to have a male teacher a
Speaker 1: lot of time and females, So I thought that was cool,
Speaker 1: and not only to be a male, but to be
Speaker 1: a black male teaching and stuff. And being and being
Speaker 1: trying to be a positive role model on positive figure
Speaker 1: for a lot of stuff. But that was that was
Speaker 1: an awesome experience for me. And I learned so much
Speaker 1: from the kids, just as much as even more than
Speaker 1: I was able to teach time. So that that's that's
Speaker 1: awesome stuff. Christian. Really appreciate that, And that's really all
Speaker 1: I got for you today. We're so glad to have
Speaker 1: you here in Miami and looking forward to your second
Speaker 1: year under Brian Flora's with this current Dolphins regime. Really
Speaker 1: appreciate your time today, Christian, and best of luck this season.
Speaker 1: All right, thank you so much to do and there
Speaker 1: he goes, Wow, how much fun is that guy? Christian Wilkins,
Speaker 1: the first round draft pick last year, had a really
Speaker 1: good rookie season. Looking forward to your number two with
Speaker 1: him playing all over the defensive line, pressuring quarterbacks, putting
Speaker 1: quarterbacks on the turf at hard Rock Stadium, helping out
Speaker 1: against the run as well. He does everything, even catch
Speaker 1: up some touchdown pass. Us talked about his one handed,
Speaker 1: going lefty, one hand catch on the end zone for
Speaker 1: a defensive tackle. You're just not gonna replicate that kind
Speaker 1: of swagger and that kind of confidence, So Christian Wilkins, everybody. Good.
Speaker 1: Time to wrap up the podcast right there, you all,
Speaker 1: please be sure to subscribe, rate, and review the podcast
Speaker 1: on Apple podcast or Spotify or wherever you get your
Speaker 1: podcast from. Go ahead and follow me on Twitter at
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Speaker 1: every single day for you. But until next time, fins up,
Speaker 1: fins Up, fins