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University of Minnesota Athletics
Lynn Finds Brother On Coaching Staff
10/19/2016 12:00:00 AM | Football
Football players often refer to their teammates as brothers. In Minnesota senior Jack Lynn's case, he found a sibling on the coaching staff. He considers linebackers coach Mike Sherels as the brother he never had.
Growing up as the middle child between two sisters, Lynn had friends and male cousins, "but no one really as close as Coach."
"He's just someone you can look up to, someone you can lean on," he said. "I never had that older, constant brother. When I got here, he was someone I could lean on and rely on."
Sherels was an assistant to then-head coach Jerry Kill when Lynn arrived on campus as a freshman. He later became a graduate assistant for defense.
Lynn would visit Sherels' office during his graduate assistant days to learn the defense, and said that's when the two became close. It was "a relief" to Lynn when the vacant linebacker coach position was filled by Sherels in 2014.
"Jack's been with me a long time," Sherels said. "He's seen my progression as a coach. I've seen his progression as a player. We've kind of grown up together in a lot of ways. I suppose that does make us brothers in a lot of ways."
In the years he has known Sherels, Lynn has grown from a redshirted freshman in 2012 to a fifth-year senior starter in 2016. He played a handful of games in 2013 and gradually added starts each year after that. Last year Lynn led the team with 11 tackles for loss, this year he is second on the team in tackles with 39.
"Jack's grown up a lot," Sherels said. "The first thing that you notice is his confidence in himself, both on and off the field. He's made himself a heck of a player. He's always been a good player, but each year, each game, each practice his confidence in himself and his ability goes up. You see him off the field and he's not the shy kid he once was. He's always had a great smile, but he's outgoing and he walks with a different air about himself now."
Sherels, too, was once a linebacker for the Gophers. His experience as a player from 2004-07 has helped him become a better coach and has benefitted Lynn.
"His vision, his eyes," Lynn said. "He's been on the field before. He's been in all the rivalry games. He understands what it takes to be successful. That's how he helps the most."
The brotherly relationship between Lynn and Sherels has been effective as they work toward the mutual goal of constant improvement.
"I'm a younger coach, so I like to tell them all that I'm not a father figure," said Sherels, who is 31. "You guys are old enough to be my brothers. That's what I consider all of them. There's a mutual respect there, just like any siblings. It's different than when you're being corrected by a parent. There's a little lightness to it, but there's still the respect, and he listens."
The Sherels-Lynn bond strengthened in the last several months when a medical emergency temporarily kept Sherels away from the team. Lynn went to visit his coach during that time and was welcomed by Sherels' wife, Emily.
"That showed me that I'm family to them, too, so that meant a lot," Lynn said.
Lynn would bring film on his visits, or send his coach questions via text message. They were never truly separated even when Sherels could not be at work.
"There was a time when I was in the hospital when he came out and saw my wife and my kids," Sherels said. "That means a lot to me because it goes back to the family atmosphere that you try to instill as a coach. We as linebackers always talk about the linebacker family and being a family. To see him act it out and personify it rather than just always talking about, that's what we've tried to build. His class and him, they've been instrumental in making the new guys feel that."
Sherels' return to the sideline in the Iowa game delighted the Gophers, especially his "little brother."
"I may not have shown it, but I was smiling on the inside to see him back on the field coaching us," Lynn said.
Lynn has only a few months left to play for Sherels, but the two will still see plenty of each other when Lynn's time at Minnesota is done. Lynn, a native of Lake Zurich, Ill., plans to stay in the Twin Cities. He admires Sherels' character as a husband and father, and will continue to spend time with him, Emily and their children.
"It means a lot (to be considered Lynn's brother)," Sherels said. "It means that he considers me family. I consider him family as well. It's an honor to be considered his brother."
