Mike McGlinchey plans to be back in 2017. And that’s very good news for the Irish football program.
On Wednesday afternoon, McGlinchey did his best to put to rest any of the speculation that was set to kickoff after the season ended, volunteering that he intends to stay, a five-year plan that was always part of the vision.
“It’s going to be a five-year process. I have 19 games left here, and that’s what I fully intend to take on,” McGlinchey said. “I have a lot left to learn. I’m not ready to go anywhere. I have the best in the business coaching me each and every day, and it’s to my benefit to just stay here and learn from him.”
McGlinchey’s return would be key for an offensive line that could return all five starters. It also feels like the right decision for an offensive lineman who has the chance to be a physically dominant player, but hasn’t necessarily put all the pieces together in his first year starting at left tackle.
McGlinchey had plenty of preseason hype heading into the season. The 6-foot-8, 310-pound offensive tackle was on the Outland and Lombardi award watch lists, and was one of PFF College’s Top 100 players in their preseason rankings. So while Ronnie Stanley and Will Fuller both chose to forgo their final years of eligibility—Fuller after declaring midseason that he intended to return—McGlinchey’s decision sounds different.
“I have so much left to learn here, and it’s not going to come down to projections or potential money that I can make,” McGlinchey said. “Because if I’m good enough at the point when I feel ready to do it, I’ll do it. And those projections will become reality at some point when it’s my time to be ready to do that.”