RUNNING BACK KALEL MULLINGS
(on having to wait to hear his name and how he feels about landing in Tennessee)
Daft day is always nervous. But, really appreciative and really a great day. I actually was at my friend and future teammate now, Jaylen Harrell's draft party last year. So, I kind of knew what to expect going into it. But at the end of the day, it's just joy. Grateful to be able to get home and spend some time with the family and get back to the people that helped me get to this position and put myself in a position to be able to become a Tennessee Titan.
(on when the last time he fumbled was)
Oh, man, I want to say junior year of high school. It's been a long time. Yeah, it has been a couple of years.
(on what he remembers about that fumble)
It was a punt return. I think I got about like 40 yards. I think I did a spin move or a juke, and had the ball low at the time. You can't have that and one of the guys was able to punch it out. Luckily, we recovered it because it was a rivalry game. But, yeah, tried to make a move and one of the guys punched it out when I was returning a punt, but we were able to get on the ball.
(on what he knows about the history of running backs with the Tennessee Titans)
Yeah, so obviously, Derrick Henry is a future Hall of Fame running back, amazing player. But it's funny, when I was five, six-years-old playing Madden, Madden 09, Maddon 10, Chris Johnson was a cheat code, he was my favorite player and just being able to follow in those footsteps and put on that baby blue is amazing.
(on how it will be to be teammates with Jaylen Harrell again)
Yeah, no, it's going to be great. As soon as I got the call, I called him, let him know. And it's just crazy that we've known each other since high school, since before we committed to Michigan. Being able to go through that journey, win a national championship together, and then now we're on the same NFL team, it's crazy how God has a plan for all of us and it's just crazy being able to live out that plan and experience everything in his glory.
(on how he would describe his style as a running back)
Definitely, I see myself as a very physical runner that's willing to earn and gain every yard I possibly can. But at the same time, I see myself as very versatile. I feel like I offer a lot to the table in terms of pass blocking, catching out of the backfield as well and definitely my hallmark though is that physicality and breaking tackles, running people over.
(on his special teams background)
Yeah, I played a whole lot. At the University of Michigan. I played my first three years at linebacker, and with that I played a lot of defense, but I also played a lot of special teams. I talked to Coach and told him I might be one of the first guys you guys have that's been on five phases of special teams, just from my defensive background. So having that background and having that appreciation of special teams, I'm super excited to be able to join a great group of guys and be able to contribute that way.
(on his involvement with the Michigan Business School and his hope to help with public housing neighborhoods across the country)
For me, my mom has always made sure that I stress my academics and I take care of my business in school so I'm able to compete on the football field. For me, while exploring that and exploring the University of Michigan Business School, I really fell in love with real estate. And in that, in the country right now, there's many housing crises, people always need housing, homeless people as well, and being able to give back in that way and contribute to society in that way would be a blessing.
(on how familiar he is with Cameron Ward and how excited he is to pair with him the backfield)
Personally, I've never met Cam (Ward), but I've seen a whole lot of his games. Every time he 1's (Cameron Ward) that field, he lights it up. I'm super pumped to be able to join a great, great player and what seems to be a great, great guy as well. I'm looking forward to getting to know him and being partnered up in that backfield and being able to protect him and tote that rock with him.
(on the pictures hanging behind him, where he is watching the draft and who is celebrating with him)
Yeah, I'm at my grandmother's house. So, she has a—I really send everything to her. She's got my high school jersey up here. This is an All-American jersey back there. It's actually a picture with me and my grandmother right there. And you know there's some defensive pictures with some of the defensive guys, a Michigan jersey. She keeps it all. This is grandma's house and it's great being here.
(on how he rates himself as a pass protector and a pass receiver)
Definitely I'm a super eager pass-pro guy. With my defensive background, it's helped me a lot to be able to detect blitzes and understand who's coming based off of looks and body language. And for me as well, I returned punts like I said and kicks in high school and college and I played receiver in high school. Something that I wasn't able to showcase that much at Michigan with my limited time as running back was my ability to catch the ball in the backfield. But it's something that I'm super confident in and I'm looking forward to be able to show that at the next level.
(on whom else is with him and the scene when he got the call)
Yeah, I'm with a whole bunch of family. I have a huge family. My grandmother has 11 siblings. A whole lot of cousins, a whole lot of aunties, a couple friends. It was just pure joy. The whole house erupted. It was just an amazing feeling to get that phone call and just know that I'm going to be a Tennessee Titan.
(on his upbringing and the discipline he will bring to the team)
Definitely. For me, going back to my grandmother on both sides, really, they're both immigrants. One of them is from Jamaica, one of them is from Trinidad, and my grandmother always tells me the next generation has to be better than the last. And that's how I view football, that's how I view my life. With everything, it's an opportunity to put my family ahead and put my family in a great position. I would hate to squander that. So each and every day, I take that that kind of immigrant mentality with me and put it on the football field. Just to be able to have this opportunity is a blessing.
(on the origin of his name)
Yeah, I'm named after Superman. Most people know Superman as Clark Kent, but on Krypton, his home planet, his name is Kal-El with a hyphen. So, my parents put it together, Kalel, and you know, that's me.
(on if he has to explain that story often)
I do. I do. But sometimes people get it right away. They hear my name, they're like, 'Oh, Superman.' And I'm like, yep, that's me.
