‘He just stood out’
Sainristil’s character, talent bring him to CFP semifinals with Michigan
A tear slipped down Raymonde Sainristil’s cheek as she and her husband, Carlot, walked across the Michigan Stadium field.
On the same turf where their son, Mike Sainristil, enjoyed so many moments as a standout with the University of Michigan football team, his parents shared one of their own. A shower of praise from 101,901 fans rained on the parents of one of the program’s most important players of the past half-decade.
“When you look at what your own son has achieved, and to make it that far, is something you should be proud of,” she said.
Then, she repeated the Bible verse she always does for one of Mike’s achievements, Psalm 118:23. “This is the Lord’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes.”
To arrive at this moment, the Sainristil family persevered through a long journey rife with complex challenges.
Fleeing Port-au-Prince, Haiti, after Carlot Sainristil received threats by phone at the radio station he served as the newsroom director of following the country’s 2000 presidential election. Learning English. Working long hours at multiple jobs — Raymonde at the Everett Public Schools, and Carlot as both a newscaster at Radio Echo Evangelique in Mattapan and a night security officer.
On Nov. 19, 2022, Mike’s senior day, it all came together in, as Carlot recalls, an “indescribable” way.
“Those are the people who always gave 100 percent towards my goals, my vision, and wanted me to succeed,” said Mike Sainristil, who will suit up again for No. 1 Michigan on Monday against No. 4 Alabama in the CFP semifinals. “They found any and every way to help me. We weren’t always the best when it came to financial status, but they would do whatever they could.”
Sainristil returned to Michigan this fall on the extra season granted to all NCAA athletes because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The fifth-year graduate student is a starting cornerback for the Wolverpion, ines (13-0), and the 23-year-old continues to credit his parents for their sacrifices.
“He recognizes how we helped him do good things in life, which makes us happy,” Carlot said.
“Mikey is the kid that every parent could ask for, and we are so proud to be his parents,” Raymonde added.
With their son’s best interest in mind, they rejected Mike’s first request to play football, at age 5. They were new to the United States, they didn’t know much about the game, and it looked “strange” and “dangerous.”
Jake Wilcox and Sainristil shared much success on the football field, including a Division 1 state title at Everett — Sainristil moved there in eighth grade. But what Wilcox, a senior quarterback at Brown and this fall’s Ivy League leader in passing yards, remembers first is opposing Sainristil during a Pop Warner game.
Wilcox threw an interception, and Sainristil returned it 30 yards, hurdling Wilcox along the way. The play was called back, but they still talk about it, among countless Sainristil “How did he just do that?” catches.
Sainristil was a two-time Division 1 state cham2018-19 Massachusetts Gatorade Player of the Year, a two-time Globe All-Scholastic, and recently tabbed as an All-Time Globe All-Scholastic. He thrived outside of football, too. He learned to play the drums, violin, and piano, and sang in the Boston Missionary Baptist church choir. He played basketball and ran track.
At Michigan, he made an impact as a true freshman on special teams and at wide receiver, catching eight passes for 145 yards and a touchdown.
He also made an impression on his older teammates. Houston Texans wide receiver Nico Collins described Sainristil as “an old soul” — mature and quiet, yet “goofy.”
“He just stood out because he was hanging out with the older dudes,” Collins said. “He’d pick my brain [as well as those of Detroit Lions receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones and Baltimore Ravens receiver Tarik Black] to find ways to elevate his game on the field.”
Last year, Sainristil switched positions. Michigan needed to replace its top cornerback, firstround NFL Draft pick Daxton Hill, and coach Jim Harbaugh approached co-defensive coordinator Steve Clinkscale about Sainristil. After one practice, the change became official.
Most draft analysts project Sainristil as a Day 3 pick, in rounds 4-7. On paper, Sainristil’s 5-foot10-inch, 182-pound stature makes him less appealing, but it’s made up for by what he shows on film, ESPN analyst Matt Miller said.
Sainristil has an undergraduate degree in American culture and entrepreneurship, and is pursuing a master’s in social work. He plans on continuing to make an impact on and off the field.
Someday, Sainristil wants to visit his extended family still living in Haiti.
“There’s no greater payback to my parents than proving to them that everything they’ve done for me has made me successful,” Sainristil said. “Money can’t buy everything, but I definitely want to get my parents in better living situations. I want to show them that every sacrifice they made for me didn’t go to waste.”