Mike Wynn- Building The Perfect Story (The Next Level)

Raphael Haynes
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The environment is noisy and many people still are in the lobby around 10:15 p.m. hanging out. Out of nowhere, he walks up with locks full around his head as if to make the notion that “I’m a bonafide baller when it comes to football.” 

Mike Wynn is a wide receiver/kick returner that played college football for the Lakeland Muskies. Born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, Wynn comes from a big family. His mom and dad had four boys and two girls. Wynn is the youngest out of the children. “I had older people to look up to and follow and some type of way, they all look at me as a motivator and they look at me as their little brother following his dream.  

Wynn was introduced to football at the age of five. “I was playing for my dad, and played with some of the best kids back then.” With his 5’10 160 pound frame, many underestimated his ability to play wide receiver. “My route running is key to my game. I have quick feet, I’m good off the line and great hands. I’m just really shifty off the line,” says Wynn. His speed and quickness gets him open and allows him to avoid jams at the line.

Catching the ball has become natural to Wynn. Although he is considered short when it comes to the wide receiver position, his leaping ability and his knack for contorting his body and catching the ball anywhere near him makes his catching radius equivalent to a 6″2 receiver. New York Giants’ receiver Odell Beckham is the player that he mimics. “Odell [Beckham] is shifty and plays with passion. He has that swagger about him and that’s the style that I play with on Saturdays.”

“My route running is key to my game. I have quick feet, I’m good off the line and great hands. I’m just really shifty off the line.”

“But my favorite receiver is Antonio Brown. I like his overall game.” Like Brown, Wynn doesn’t let his size dictate his play. He’s not afraid to make that catch where he has to extend his body while knowing he will get hit.

Although Wynn looks up to Brown as someone to emulate on the field, his parents are the ones that inspire him to be great not only in football but life as well. “My mom keeps me going, she keeps me motivated and she stays on my head by helping me stay on track.” Wynn knows that if there is a time he gets side tracked or even down, his mother has that sixth sense to realize there is something wrong and will be able to be there for him if needed. 

His father is the person that drives him and makes sure he’s grounded and also ready for life. “He taught me how to be a man and told me to focus on school,” says Wynn. Wynn remembers when the only way he could play football is if he had good grades. Wynn understands that although he loves football, there is more to life than just football which carries a lot of weight. “My father would tell me it’s not about touchdowns but it’s about good grades.” He’s appreciative of that and realizes that school has gotten him to where he is now.

Every since Wynn started playing football, his size has been a factor and always had to prove that he could play with the others. At a young age, it bothered him for a while. “Since a kid, I’ve been the smallest kid on the block or the team and it just grew and made me a stronger person,” says Wynn. He turned it into fuel and used it as a chip on his shoulders. “It lets me know that I can be the smallest in the room but also the toughest and I’m willing to go at it with the biggest person.” During his games, the acrobat catches that are made in traffic displays his toughness and his courage. He made it a point not to let his size dictate his play.

“My father would tell me it’s not about touchdowns but it’s about good grades.”

Wynn has graduated from college and now focuses on his football career. He was invited to play in the FCS Bowl in Daytona, Florida in December and is now getting ready for his pro day. Now that he took care of his first priority which was school, he has all hands on deck when it comes to concentrating on football. Coming from a small school and being one of the smallest on his team, gives him the confidence that he has the biggest heart on whatever team he’s on. “My goal is to train, get better, faster, have a great pro day and play at the next level.”

Raphael Haynes

Atlanta, GA

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