Just a day before practice began last Sunday, a Northern Michigan University football player made a rescue saving a struggling swimmer on the Black Rocks waters near Lake Superior. 

Over at Black Rocks in Marquette, sophomore defensive back Ratavian Rinkines of Lansing, Michigan, saw a man jumped in to Lake Superior and noticed him having trouble getting back to shore. 

Photo Credit: NMU Intercollegiate Athletics/WLUC TV-6

According to a press release from the NMU Athletics website via WLUC-TV6, Rinkines was over at Presque Isle Park enjoying the beach with his friends and people watching, and he spotted the man having trouble swimming. 

“I was sitting on the beach next to Black Rocks and noticed this man jump in,” Rinkines explained in the press release. “I saw that he was swimming but then seemed to stop and start yelling for his wife. I realized he must be drowning so I started yelling up to his wife but she couldn’t hear me so I sprinted around the beach and then climbed down to pull him out of the water.”

After reaching safety, the swimmer told Rinkines that his muscles cramped up and that he couldn’t swim any longer afterwards.

The sophomore said he had to act immediately when he saw what happened. 

“I didn’t think about it when it happened I was just like, ‘Go,'” Rinkines said. “But it makes me feel good knowing I helped somebody else.”

TV 6 said that Rinkines, the swimmer and his wife met again later that day, and said they have talked for a bit and did recognize each other as they were walking around the Superior Dome tracks. 

In case someone is in that kind of situation, Rinkines said is to just react and go in time of their need. 

“Pay attention and notice things, and just react, Rinkines said. “Don’t think because you never know what you can do for somebody.”

Rinkines and his football teammates will be back in action September 7 against the McKendree University Bearcats at 1:00 p.m. at the Superior Dome. 

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