The same speed and quickness that makes him a threat as a cornerback and a return specialist to find the end zone on any given play, also allowed him to qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in the spring of 2004.
“It’s a simple statement. Any time Dennis touches the football, he has a chance to score,” says Hilltopper head coach David Elson. “He has phenomenal speed. On defense, if he gets the chance to intercept a pass we’ve seen him take it the distance, and in it’s the same in the return game — anytime we can block for him and gets a clean look at things, he has a chance to score.
“Any time you score on defense or special teams, it’s a game changing play.”
It didn’t take long for Mitchell, a 5-foot-8, 180-pound native of Indianapolis, to show WKU fans those possibilities. In just his second start in the Toppers’ 2003 regular-season finale at Youngstown State, he returned an interception 84 yards for a touchdown to give the team the lead for good. The following fall, Mitchell’s 68-yard punt return for a score in the fourth quarter allowed WKU to defeat Northern Iowa on the road, 17-10, and he added a 64-yard punt return for a touchdown in last year’s season opener.
But, it wasn’t just his speed that allowed Mitchell to impact games. Playing safety, he was credited with four tackles for loss — including three sacks — in his NCAA Division I-AA playoff debut, a 45-7 Hilltopper victory over Jacksonville State. One week later at No. 3 seed Wofford, he posted a career-best 13 stops including two for loss, an interception and a blocked kick.
In fact, his work on the football field has garnered Mitchell numerous awards — he was second-team all-Gateway Football Conference as a junior, earned honorable mention all-league accolades his sophomore season, and has been selected the conference’s player of the week on three occasions (twice for special teams, once on defense).
Yet, when asked how he is able to take on the dual responsibilities, Mitchell’s answer is simple. “It doesn’t take much to handle it. Most guys get one tape, I just get two because I have to look at the other team’s offense as well as special teams. It’s not that much more time consuming.”
He does acknowledge, though, that he is cognizant of his impact on any given game.
“I think that my speed helps me impact the other team mentally,” he says. “A lot of guys on the other sideline try to get into my head because they know that I can break the game open at any time.”
Mitchell came to the Hill having experienced success in multiple sports, not just positions on a football field. While he was an all-state selection for Warren Central High football team, he also posted top-five finishes at the state meet. Once again, Mitchell didn’t waste much time proving his abilities to handle both sports at WKU.
At his first Sun Belt Conference outdoor championships, Mitchell finished fifth in the 100-meter dash in a time of 10.46 seconds, which was good enough to qualify for the NCAA Mideast Regional meet. Two weeks later, Mitchell’s 10.19 clocking in the event was good enough to earn a berth in the NCAA Championships. Since then, he has earned all-Sun Belt honors at the league’s indoor championships and qualified again for the NCAA Regional during the outdoor campaign.
Mitchell downplayed the accomplishment, even though he would be competing in meets on Saturday after multiple practices during spring drills. “Sometimes I would have a practice and then get on a plane and run the next day,” he says. “But, it let me know that I could run with big-time guys. In high school, I had never run that fast, so when I did that it shocked me a little bit.”
What he never complained about was that while he was running in numerous events during the winter and spring, he never did take a break from his off-season obligations with the football program. Mitchell first gained serious playing time as a freshman because, in his estimation, he “outworked other players. I saw what they didn’t want to do, then I went out and did it. That really gave me an edge.”
And, once he did get playing time, Mitchell wasn’t about to let up. “I was always there, but the guys in front of me had experience so it was hard to just take someone’s spot. When I finally did get to play, I just told myself that I wasn’t coming out. I had to make those plays to stay in the game, then I figured I might as well keep making them.”
His off-season work with the Hilltoppers became more important when the coaching staff decided to move Mitchell from safety to the corner. “I hadn’t played cornerback since my junior year of high school, so it was a little bit different getting used to guarding a receiver and not a tight end,” he says.
Mitchell’s contributions to the program off the field have been just as important as his ability to adapt to change on it. Not only has he needed to prepare for multiple roles on Saturdays, but he has served as an important leader in trying to get the rest of WKU’s defensive backs — particularly young cornerbacks Rashad Etheridge and Travis Watters — to prepare as hard as he does.
“I think that one of Dennis’ best qualities is his work ethic, even in the off-season,” comments Elson. “He just gives everything he’s got. That’s been good not just for the guys who play his position, but for all of our young guys who watch him prepare in the off-season and how he carries that over onto the field for practices.
“The more seasoned veterans you have doing that at that stage of their career, then the better off your future is going to be — everyone sees what the expectations are, and they see the rewards with a guy like Dennis. His accomplishments and the plays he has made over the years come from that hard work and preparation.”
“Dennis is a great effort guy and practice player, he does all of our drills and situational work at full speed,” adds Mike Dietzel, who coaches Hilltopper defensive backs. “Basically, he teaches younger players how to prepare for practice. Typically a young guy comes in and they are used to practicing like they did in high school, which involves a lot of talking and jogging through drills, but it’s a lot different when you get to college — we want to do things full speed as much as possible, try to teach guys to run to the football.
“That’s what Dennis does a great job of. When he practices, he goes 100 miles per hour. When the young guys see how he does it, then they learn how to practice. He also makes sure that they are competing and working hard — he expects that out of himself and demands it from them. That’s where he’s really helped.
“That’s a large transition, taking a young kid out of high school and teaching him how to prepare and how to practice. When they follow Dennis’ lead, it really helps them prepare to become college players.”
While Mitchell has succeeded in multiple sports on the Hill, it was his first love — football — that drew him to campus. Originally, he was set to sign with Ohio, but he didn’t have the prerequisite number of core courses per NCAA rules. Ironically, it wasn’t that he was underperforming in the classroom that led to the school withdrawing its offer, it was that Mitchell didn’t truly believe in his own athletic abilities.
“It wasn’t that I had bad grades, I didn’t know about the NCAA’s rules because I didn’t think that I was going to play college football — I never thought I was good enough to play at that level,” he recalls. “I wasn’t aware of the NCAA Clearinghouse, so when I had to fill out their paperwork it caught me by surprise.
“To tell you the truth, I didn’t really win in high school as much as I wanted to. I didn’t know if I was going to college or not. When my coach came in and told me about recruiting, it surprised me. I ran track to stay in shape for football — I love football, and I run because I’m good at it and didn’t want to waste my talent.”
Mitchell’s dedication has led to a successful collegiate athletic career, and his work ethic has proven to be just as important off the field. A member of the Gateway Conference’s Academic Honor Roll in 2004, Mitchell is set to earn his degree from WKU in December. Still, he will remain in class during the spring semester as he competes in his final year of eligibility on the track team.
He’s interested in pursuing his option in football, but according to Mitchell, “If that doesn’t work out, I’m really leaning towards being a fireman. It just hit me one day that it will be fulfilling to do that.”
First, Mitchell has two more opportunities to rescue his teammates on the field. Maybe at the end of the spring season he will he be able to look back and appreciate his accomplishments at WKU.
