 Martin Channels gets into the backfield during a Miami scrimmage. Photo by Kevin Smith. A 6-0, 325-pound defensive tackle from Xenia, Ohio, Channels started his final season as a Miami RedHawk last Saturday. It was a day to forget for some, and a day to remember for others. Miami fans, still groggy from a disappointing 2008 season, might be counted among those inclined to forget. Miami coaches, on the other hand, would definitely be among those who remember. They remember every thing they could get from video of the Kentucky game.
With a road game at Boise State slated for Saturday, the RedHawks must regroup in a hurry. Head coach Mike Haywood reminded the press following Saturday’s loss that football teams typically make major progress between the first and second games of a season. According to Channels, coaches spent this week's practice sessions stressing improvement in a variety of areas. The coaches “are not letting anything slip. The tempo – they’ve notched it up 10 levels higher,” said Channels, adding that it wasn’t like coaches weren’t intense prior to last Saturday.
Channels noted there were both positive and negative things on the game videos. “It was a lot of little things that hurt us, and the score got bigger and bigger,” Channels said. “It’s the little things that can make a difference in a game. That one step can cost you a yard or even a touchdown.”
Missteps and miscues, of course, are more frequent among younger players, and this week’s Miami two-deep contains three freshmen and three sophomores on the defensive side. Channels, the only senior in the front seven, also got an early start and did not redshirt. “I played maybe four games my freshman year due to some injuries,” he said. “I came out my sophomore year, and it’s been going since then.”
Asked about how it felt to see significant action early in his career, Channels said, “I wanted to come in here and make an impact for the team. I didn’t really look at it as pressure. I just looked at is as ‘do my job’ and try to get better.”
Things did get better, both for Channels and the team in 2007. “I think we came off of a 2-9 season my freshman year. My sophomore year, we went 6-7 and went to the MAC (championship game).”
It was back down again last year as the RedHawks finished 2-10. Now Channels has an entirely new coaching staff as he heads into what he hopes is a good senior season. He credits defensive line coach Antoine Smith with allowing him to be productive. “He tries to let me go out and be me, and if there is something wrong, or how I’m doing it (is wrong), he fixes it up a little bit.”
With some positions, measuring productivity is relatively easy to quantify – rushing yards, passing yards, interceptions, and so forth. For a defensive lineman, recorded tackles – or the lack thereof – can be misleading. “Penetration is the key thing,”
Channels said. “I might not make that many tackles. I know that as a defensive lineman, if I get good penetration, I might not make the tackle, but maybe I can (destroy) the offensive scheme and what they are trying to do.”
Channels is considered a good pass rusher for a defensive tackle, but he takes particular pride in what he feels is his strength. “I believe that I am pretty good at stopping the run,” he said, adding that he would like the opposing offense to eventually feel running to his side is a bad idea.
Channels, who has started 12 of his last 13 games, had three tackles against Kentucky and was part of a defensive line that clogged up the middle, particularly in the first half. “They tried some (inside) stuff and then got out of it,” he said. Much of Kentucky’s 245 rushing yards came on the outside.
With the younger players learning both at practice and on the job, Channels feels there will be continued improvement. He indicated underclassmen are earning their shot. “There are a lot of freshmen that they recruited in that are playing now because they fit our defensive scheme, and they are the best guys playing,” he said. “It’s all about competing.”
For a linemen, battles in the trenches are their own reward. Channels said he does look at film to check on various things, but beyond that, he really doesn’t pay much attention to the size, stats or reputation of an opponent. “I’ve still got to go out and play my game. It doesn’t matter who I am going against ….I just go out and play my game.”
That kind of philosophy might come in handy this week as the RedHawks go from the frying pan into the fire. Their opponent, Boise State, jumped up to a No. 12 ranking after defeating Oregon last week. “I think it is a great opportunity. We’re just going out there and handle our business – try and go out there and get a “W.” That is our goal,” Channels said
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