19 hours Ago By MATT COSS [email protected]
When Chris Winter crossed paths with Tucker Kinney for the first time, Kinney weighed around 200 pounds and was a wide receiver and defensive lineman for Central DeWitt High School. A lot has changed in six years. Kinney is 310 pounds and has established himself as one of the premier offensive tackles in NCAA Division III football.
Recently named first-team All-American Rivers Conference for the third straight year, the Wartburg College fifth-year standout is gearing up for the closing chapter of his collegiate career. “It is a testament to what you can do when you put your faith in coaches and you believe you can do it,” said Kinney, whose 11th-ranked Knights host seventh-ranked Wisconsin-Platteville in a second-round playoff contest Saturday afternoon in Waverly. Kinney was a four-sport standout for the Sabers — football, basketball, golf and baseball.
He admitted football wasn't his best sport in high school, but Wartburg's tradition and the team environment with football was too appealing to pass up. People are also reading..
. After a semester working on the defensive line (no 2020 season because of COVID-19) and Kinney continuing to add weight to his 6-foot-4 frame, the Wartburg coaches moved him to the offensive line in the spring of 2021. It was a position of need.
It also was the position where coaches could envision him thriving. “That’s where we saw Tucker’s calling to reach his full potential,” said Winter, in his fourth season as Wartburg’s head coach. “He was a physical guy and had some of those attributes you look for with his athleticism and the way he moved.
He just kept on growing. “So when we got to spring ball that first year with him, we wanted to see what it looked like. The rest is history.
” Kinney saw action in eight games in 2021. During the past three seasons, Kinney has started 37 games, been part of three conference championship teams and two national semifinal runs and earned All-Region and All-American honors twice by D3football.com .
The left tackle is the anchor of an offensive line that leads the ARC in rushing at 212.7 yards per game this season. “I pretty much had to learn technique from scratch,” Kinney said, “so there really is no room for any bad habits when you’re learning from college coaches on being able to play a position you've never played before.
” Winter said the biggest area of growth for Kinney was his mentality. “Early in his career, the technique, the movements and picking up on the blocking scheme, it came pretty simple and natural to him,” Winter noted. “As he’s grown, and this year specifically, he’s dominating people differently than you normally see at this level.
“He’s just a different guy in the way he can finish blocks. He’s become a finisher." Wartburg (9-1) concluded a third consecutive undefeated run through conference play earlier this month with a 69-14 rout over Loras on Senior Day.
It was especially meaningful for Kinney, who scored his first college touchdown in that game. Faced with a third-and-goal at the Loras 5-yard line in the second quarter, Wartburg split Kinney out to the left in an unbalanced set. Quarterback Carter Markham, a North Scott High School graduate, rolled right and threw the ball back to Kinney.
He caught it and displayed some nifty footwork to elude a defender near the goal line for the score — his first touchdown since Week 7 of his high school senior season in 2019. “We’ve been practicing that play for Tucker probably since about Week 2,” Winter said. “We were looking for the right opportunity and right look for it.
” Kinney called it an offensive lineman’s dream. “You don’t often get to say you scored a touchdown when you weigh 310 pounds,” he said. “The biggest thought in my head when the play was called, we’re only going to have the opportunity to run it once, so don’t mess it up the first time.
” Since it was a backward pass, it went down as a 5-yard run. That was significant to Kinney. “My sophomore year, I recovered a fumble for negative rush yards,” he said.
“The whole thing was me getting back to positive (rushing) yards for my career.” Kinney's football career might not be finished when Wartburg’s season ends. NFL scouts have visited campus this fall to get a glimpse of Kinney and teammate Parker Rochford, an All-America defensive back and the conference’s defensive player of the year.
Winter said Wartburg had had NFL teams visit in previous years but not as frequently as this season. The Miami Dolphins, Buffalo Bills, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings and Seattle Seahawks are among the franchises to send a representative to Waverly since September. “That is every little kid’s dream,” Kinney said.
“For me to possibly have an opportunity is just amazing being a Division III kid.” Scouts have told Winter that Kinney’s measurements align with other linemen attracting attention in the upcoming draft class. The next step for Kinney is performing and excelling at a pro day this spring.
A college all-star game is a possibility as well, depending on the length of Wartburg’s playoff run. “Whether it is getting drafted or a free-agent type of thing, the feedback we’ve gotten from scouts that have been on our campus is that he’s got a realistic chance to continue playing football at the next level,” Winter said. “I’m confident saying there will be a scouting report on Tucker by all 32 (NFL) teams.
” A mechanical engineering major, Kinney also has the option to play golf for Wartburg this spring. Kinney placed fifth at the conference meet last year, including a final-round 72 at Glen Oaks Country Club in Des Moines. He's posted an 18-hole stroke average around 80 each of the past two seasons.
His football opportunities will take priority, he said. “I never imagined this five years ago,” Kinney said. “This has been everything I wanted and more coming to Wartburg.
I’m going to miss it a lot when it ends.” Wartburg is 35-3 the past three seasons and has had the chance to play perennial powers Wisconsin-Whitewater, St. John's (Minnesota), Mount Union and North Central in the playoffs the past two years.
It nearly made the Stagg Bowl (the Division III national championship game) each of the past two years, losing semifinal tilts to Mount Union (34-31) in 2022 and to North Central (34-27) last year. Kinney is seeking one last hurrah with his buddies. “We didn’t win all that many games at DeWitt, so being able to come to a program with a winning tradition, make relationships with these guys and win football games is nice,” he said.
“We talk about playing every play like it is our last. At some point in your life, it will be your last play and you don’t want to leave with any regrets.” Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox!.
