USF Football's Mitch Wilcox Becomes 14th Bull to Be Part of Super Bowl Team
By Joey Johnston
When he was growing up, Mitchell Wilcox described his athletic ambition to his parents.
"I never want to be average,'' Wilcox said. "I hate the mention of that word.''
Now Wilcox, the former USF Bulls tight end, is officially extraordinary.
Wilcox, a three-time all-conference selection during his USF career (2016-19), will achieve a dream when his Cincinnati Bengals face the Los Angeles Rams in Sunday night's Super Bowl 56 at Southern California's SoFi Stadium.
Wilcox, a second-year NFL player, went to the Bengals as an undrafted free agent in 2020. He was a practice-squad player as a rookie, but made the Bengals' 53-man roster out of training camp this season.
As a special-teams player and a reserve tight end (three receptions for 16 yards) appearing in 15 games in the 2021 regular season, Wilcox has developed into a valuable performer, playing 18 offensive snaps in the AFC Championship game, while continuing the Super Bowl legacy for USF's football program.
For the ninth time in the last 11 Super Bowls, a USF player is a member of team playing in the NFL's Big Game. During that span, among state of Florida programs, only the Florida Gators (11) have more representation. The Bulls have had 14 players on Super Bowl teams, making 18 total appearances and 10 becoming Super Bowl champions, including one two-time champion. Impressive numbers, considering the Bulls just completed their 25th season.
Last season's Super Bowl was a special treat. Former USF players Jason Pierre-Paul (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) and Austin Reiter (Kansas City Chiefs) were on opposing sides at Raymond James Stadium, the home field where they competed for the USF Bulls. With the Bucs victory, Pierre-Paul, a three-time Pro Bowler, claimed his second Super Bowl victory after gaining one with the New York Giants in 2012. Don't feel too bad for Reiter, he won a Super Bowl title as the starting center for the Chiefs the previous year.
Wilcox, a 6-foot-4, 247-pounder, also has an opportunity to become a memorable story. He beat the odds to make an NFL roster. He's playing for a team that beat odds of its own. The Bengals, who hadn't won a postseason game since the 1990 season, were 4-11-1 with the AFC North's last-place season when Wilcox was a rookie.
From worst to first … and beyond.
Wilcox, 25, has primarily worked as a special-teams player for the Bengals. He had 239 special-teams snaps and 84 offensive snaps in the regular season. He saw increased activity during the postseason and showed up big as a running-game blocker, also a role where he flourished at USF.
As one of USF's top BayMade recruits, Wilcox was an all-state football/basketball player at Tarpon Springs High School. Wilcox slept with a basketball as a kid and that was his favorite sport. Indeed, his top Sponger moment was probably making the state Final Four in 2015 with Tarpon Springs, the first time its basketball program advanced that far in 72 years.
But Wilcox's future was football, where he projected as a top-flight prospect. At USF, the hometown school where Wilcox said "everything was there to put me on a path to success,'' he set the program's career records for receptions (100), receiving yardage (1,326) and touchdowns (11) by a tight end.
Wilcox assumed a greater role with the Bengals when tight end C.J. Uzomah suffered a medial-collateral ligament sprain two weeks ago. Wilcox's increased production — along with his potential and work ethic — prompted rave reviews from coaches and teammates.
"Mitch has been awesome,'' Bengals tight ends coach James Casey said. "He came in as an undrafted free agent, so you never know with those guys. But he has worked his tail off to make the roster to contribute on special teams and develop as a young player.''
"He's certainly somebody who, from where he started to where he is now, has progressed a ton,'' Bengals special-teams coordinator Darrin Simmons said. "There's a lot of room to grow, but the athleticism that he brings, the speed that he brings, the work ethic that he brings, is going to make him an effective player for (years) to come in this league.''
Wilcox's attributes were impressive from the beginning at USF, where he displayed blocking physicality, great hands and an uncommon ability to run deeper routes as a big man. The Bengals have noticed.
"Mitch is athletic as crap,'' Uzomah said. "When I went down … I was excited to see him play and see him step up and the moment not be too big.''
Wilcox won't participate in a bigger moment than the Super Bowl. Happily, his parents, Chuck and Carole, will be in LA to cheer him on as they were whisked to the West Coast on the Bengals charter after also enjoying the AFC Championship game in Kansas City.
As the Super Sunday countdown enters its final hours, he's determined to bring honor to himself, his family, Tarpon Springs High School and certainly USF. He's elated to be the 14th different USF player to appear in the Super Bowl. If he becomes the 11th former Bull to earn a Super Bowl ring, it would be the perfect exclamation point for a great story.
