USF Athletics

Game 1 Player Spotlight: Mitchell Brinkman

September 12, 2020

SEASON OPENER: The Citadel at USF
DAY & TIME: Saturday, 7 p.m.
LOCATION: Raymond James Stadium, Tampa
TV: ESPNU
RADIO: Over the Air: 1250 AM WHNZ & Digital: Bulls Unlimited
SERIES: Series tied, 1-1. Bulls won last meeting, 45-6, in 1998
USF GAME NOTES (Week 1)
 

By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer

TAMPA, SEPT. 12, 2020 – Energetic Bulls fans have a new Mitch to make noise for, and he even wears No. 89.

Just one season after Mitchell Wilcox capped off his record-breaking USF career, graduate transfer Mitchell Brinkman is ready to carry on the Bulls' tradition of having a solid, all-around talent starting at tight end.

"I'll do whatever it takes to help the team, and win," the fifth-year senior said. "Hopefully, that's with the ball in my hands a couple times, for sure."

Brinkman's first chance to make an impact is Saturday in the season opener against The Citadel under the lights at Raymond James Stadium. Once he suits up in his USF uniform, 6-feet-4, 250-pound playmaker will look to build on his breakout 2019 campaign that saw the former Northern Illinois standout haul in 34 passes for 445 yards (13.1 ypc) and three touchdowns.

"We had a new coaching staff come in at Northern Illinois and they made the tight end a role that they wanted to get the ball to consistently," Brinkman said. "I just kind of seized the opportunity. I knew it was coming and it was a lot of fun."

Now the proud Bull is brimming with excitement about the chance to work with new head coach Jeff Scott and help offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr.'s up-tempo offense zoom through Brinkman's final collegiate season.

"We love to use the tight ends in this system and Mitch fits perfectly into what we do," said Weis Jr. whose offense helped tight end Harrison Bryant earn All-America honors and the John Mackey Award at FAU last year after posting 65 receptions for 1,004 yards and seven touchdowns.

Brinkman (Council Bluffs, Iowa) started getting pumped up about the possibilities of making many big plays for the Bulls when he joined the program this spring as a grad transfer. The MBA student jumped right into his USF playbook and started to study with new position coach Joey King virtually though Zoom.

"I wanted to come in here and be prepared, or if not more prepared, and know the playbook better than anybody on the team," Brinkman said. "Coach's big thing, he always says, 'If you know your job, it's easy to play as hard as you can. You don't have to think.'"

The new conductor of USF's offense is quite impressed with "extremely intelligent" Brinkman's mastery of the system.

"He could probably line up at any position on the field and know exactly what to do, he's that smart," Weis said. "He can help other people get lined up in the right spots. He can call things out right away, great recognition."

Starting Saturday, Bulls fans will begin to really notice Brinkman's uncanny resemblance to Wilcox in a USF uniform, since they're virtually the same size. They even sport similar hairstyles and beards.

More importantly, Brinkman has all of the same type of tools that will help USF's offense get the job done on game day.

"He's a great run blocker. He's extremely powerful. He can dig out a defensive end and in the passing game, he's extremely sure-handed," Weis said. "He's gonna make catches with people on him and he's a big, physical guy, too. He's heavy, so when he catches balls across the middle, he's gonna bounce off some tacklers and make some plays. I'm very excited about Mitch and what he brings."
 
More About Mitch

• ASPIRING AD: Part of Brinkman's recruiting process involved speaking with Vice President of Athletics Michael Kelly, who was "extremely instrumental" in the tight end become a Bull. The Microsoft Teams chat was set up by Jeff Scott after USF's head coach heard about Brinkman's aspirations of becoming an athletic director at the collegiate level. "(Michael) has a lot of experience that I'd love to learn more about and get to know him more," said Brinkman, who even expressed interest in working for Kelly following football.
• RECENT COLLEGE GRAD: This May, Brinkman graduated from Northern Illinois University with a Bachelor of Science degree in business management. He minored in Spanish/marketing and has a very friendly, social personality that would fit well in the college sports career world once he earns his MBA. "You have to do a lot of public speaking," said Brinkman of his desired athletic director role. "Being confident in what I have to say is definitely something I pride myself on."
• SPORTS FAMILY: Brinkman's father, Matt, played linebacker at Northern Iowa from 1998-90. His mother, Carrie, was a softball player at the Division II level. Brinkman's older brother, Mason, is currently a varsity defensive line coach for Brighton High School in Utah.
• MORE ABOUT NO. 89: Brinkman originally wore No. 87 during his prep career at Lewis Central High School, located in his hometown of Council Bluffs, Iowa. He was given No. 89 at Northern Illinois and "just wanted to roll with it" at USF. When he committed to the Bulls, he was already a big fan of Mitchell Wilcox, who actually reached out to Brinkman and said, "Hey, nice name, nice number. Good luck this year in Tampa."
• THIS BULL LOVES DOGS: During USF's stretch of home games in October, Brinkman is hopeful his girlfriend in Illinois will be able to visit Tampa and bring along their two dogs - a Redbone Coonhound and a chocolate Labrador retriever.

 
About USF Football
The USF football program first took the field in 1997 and completed its 23^rd season (20^th at the FBS level) in 2019. The Bulls have posted 15 winning seasons, earned 14 All-America selections and 29 first-team all-conference selections and has seen 30 players selected in the NFL Draft. USF has made 10 bowl games appearances (going 6-4 in those games) and posted a program record six straight appearances from 2005-2010. The Bulls most recently made four straight bowl appearances from 2015-18 and posted back-to-back 10-win seasons in 2016 and 2017, logging a program-record 11-2 mark in 2016 while finishing both seasons ranked in the Top 25. USF spent a program record 20 straight weeks ranked in the Top 25 during the 2016 and 2017 seasons and reached as high as No. 2 in the national rankings during the 2007 season.
                                                                                
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