Football Runs In Mitchell's Family

STARKVILLE – Football certainly runs in the family for Mississippi State freshman linebacker Nic Mitchell.

Mitchell is the third in the line of brothers currently playing college football. His has one older brother, Justin, playing as a senior defensive lineman at Harvard and another, Kris, a redshirt freshman wide receiver at Florida International.

There's also a fourth brother, Jonathan, that is currently a 10th grade cornerback at Mandarin High School in Jacksonville, Florida.

It was there that Mandarin head coach Bobby Ramsay first caught a glimpse of Nic Mitchell during his freshman year. Knowing his family's genetics and Mitchell's frame at the time, Ramsay believed there was plenty to work with over the next four years.

"If he puts everything together, he's got a chance to be a stud," Ramsay said of his initial impression of Mitchell. "Certainly my first year here, he's a guy that we looked at that could do something special for us."

Mitchell made three sacks as a sophomore during Mandarin's Class 8A State Championship run before really coming into his own during his final two seasons. He stacked up 60 tackles and snagged an interception as a junior and recorded 97 stops, 17.5 tackles for loss, 8.5 sacks, forced and recovered two fumbles – one returned for a touchdown – as a senior.

Mitchell caught the eye of colleges as well. He received 14 scholarship offers and was committed to Temple for nearly two months before switching allegiances to MSU early into his senior season.

"I knew what kind of program this was and how it is going to mold me," Mitchell said. "It's going to take me beyond my potential so that's really why I chose to come here."

The 6-foot-2, 230-pounder has added around 15 pounds since he enrolled in June and is still getting adjusted to how things operate at the college level.

"It's a huge transition," Mitchell said. "I feel like you don't know what to expect until you get here. You'll know how it's going to be once you get here. You can't really prepare for it. I feel like I'm transitioning well and doing fine."

Aiding in his transition is an acclaimed group of linebacker coaches. Zach Arnett serves as both defensive coordinator and linebackers coach alongside 11-year veteran Matt Brock and former MSU and NFL linebacker Jamar Chaney.

"Since I've been here, coach Arnett, coach Chaney and coach Brock have already taught me so much about the game of football that I didn't know about during high school," Mitchell said. "There's more fundamentals to it and more details. Everything is about details and your alignment."

Mitchell has mainly been manning the middle at Mike but is also learning the Sam and Will linebacker positions as well in Arnett's 3-3-5 scheme.

"It's a real aggressive defense," Mitchell said. "Coach Arnett is always on me about flying around. That's what he wants. Everything else will take care of itself as long as you're flying around and getting to the ball and being physical once you get there."

Mitchell has already earned the reputation of being a heavy hitter. He laid the lumber across the middle on numerous occasions during the Bulldogs' preseason scrimmages.

"Nic several times has looked like the thumper that we thought he was on film," Arnett said. "He's not afraid of contact. He's had a couple of really good hits that you like to see from a linebacker."

If Mitchell continues to follow the same trajectory and makes the same sort of jump at Mississippi State that he did in high school, then big things could be in store for both him and the Bulldogs.

"I think they're getting a guy who has tremendous upside," Ramsay said. "I think Nic is a guy who has NFL potential...His progression through high school was always really linear and you don't always see that, but his was really steep. The older he got, you could see him buy into the weight room and his aggressiveness and confidence. He's a smart kid and I think they got a steal personally."

Mississippi State University Athletics

Football Runs In Mitchell's Family

Players Mentioned

Nic Mitchell

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