Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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16 OCT. 31, 2026 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY JACK SOBLE W hen he coached DJ McKin- ney in youth football, Cor- rie Booker ran a play called "Shark." It wasn't complicated. "Shark" was just McKinney, who played middle line- backer at the time, blitzing off the edge and demolishing whoever happened to take the football. McKinney later de- scribed himself at that age as the small- est player on the field, but back then, he never knew he was small. "I mean, he would knock dust from kids, man," Booker told Blue & Gold Il- lustrated. "It was so intense that some- times I had to check him and see if he had a concussion, because that's how powerful and driven he was." McKinney's favorite player was Ray Lewis, and he was obsessed with watch- ing tape from the all-time great lineback- er's career. Booker's son, CJ, who was McKinney's childhood friend, wanted to be like Reggie Bush. Not McKinney, who knew from an early age that he wanted to play defense. Booker said McKinney would "religiously" watch Lewis high- light tapes on YouTube before each game. When he strapped his pads on, McK- inney tried to emulate Lewis on the field. "I would be afraid for him, because he was so fearless," McKinney's dad, Da- mion, told BGI. "He would attack guys three times his size, and he would hit them like he was the bigger person. I didn't understand the explosiveness that he had when he would tackle, but he could tackle the biggest guys." DJ McKinney was physical, Damion McKinney explained, but he was also smart. He knew when to go for the legs if he was hunting bigger game. And he knew when to blast somebody if the sit- uation called for it. That happened Oct. 10, when Stanford quarterback Davis Warren raced for the sticks on third- and-long in the first quarter. The fifth-year Notre Dame corner- back, despite simultaneously tangling with a blocker, lowered his shoulder. Warren went no farther. McKinney has several influences in football and in life. His dad, who rec- ognized that his long-term future was at defensive back, is one. But the ag- gressiveness as a tackler that, among other things, has made him one of the top cornerbacks in college football in his first half-season with the Irish after transferring from Colorado? Well, those Ray Lewis highlights stuck with him. "Really just go out there and run through somebody's face," McKinney said. "I guess that's a Marshawn Lynch quote, but I feel like it also applies in that sense." ROLE MODELS As Baylor women's basketball romped to a 40-0 record in 2012, it was not un- common to see 8-year-old DJ McKinney at the practice facility in Waco, Texas. Damion McKinney was an assistant coach with the Bears at the time. He served under head coach Kim Mulkey for seven years, winning a national championship with a team led by junior center Brittney Griner and sophomore point guard Odyssey Sims. Damion McKinney actually helped recruit Griner and Sims, whom he coached in travel ball, to Baylor. In turn, they became key figures for his son. "Odyssey Sims and Brittney Griner, they really just kind of adopted him," Damion McKinney said. "Odyssey was probably one of the most competitive players that you would ever meet, male or female. She was a champion, and he really admired her work ethic." DJ McKinney said he looked up to Sims in particular, describing her as someone who has "always just been tough." "He really admired how well she played, and she was elite," Damion McK- inney said. "She was the best point guard in the country at the time, and he wit- nessed that. He witnessed Brittney Gri- SHARK ISLAND Get to know DJ McKinney, Notre Dame's latest shutdown cornerback According to Pro Football Focus, McKinney had allowed the lowest passer rating in coverage (12.0) among qualified Power Four cornerbacks through Week 6 of this season. PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER