STARKVILLE — Shades Valley (Ala.) High School football coach Bill Smith was willing to do whatever it took to help Keith Mixon.
When Mississippi State football coach Dan Mullen and then-defensive
coordinator Geoff Collins, who is now at Florida, came to the school in Irondale, Alabama, a suburb of Birmingham, to check on defensive lineman Da’Ron Payne, Smith used it as an opportunity to talk about Mixon.
Before Mullen and Collins left, he asked if they would watch some highlights of Mixon, a 5-foot-8, 175-pound running back/wide receiver who was attracting interest from Arkansas State and Alabama-Birmingham. Smith said Mullen agreed and sat down in a classroom at Shades Valley High to watch clips of Mixon.
“To quote a movie, he made fast people look not fast. His vision, his wiggle, and making people miss in tight spaces stood out,” said Smith, who is now the head football coach at Munford High (Ala.).
Mullen liked what he saw and extended a scholarship offer to Mixon, who wound up a part of MSU’s 2015 signing class.
“We just saw a playmaker,” Mullen said. “He’s a dynamic player and a hard worker. What you’ll see in a guy like Keith Mixon that all of a sudden he has the ball in his hands and it’s wow.”
Mixon, a three-star recruit by 247Sports, will look to showcase those skills at 2:30 p.m. Saturday (SEC Network) when MSU (2-5) plays host to Samford on Homecoming at Davis Wade Stadium.
Mixon finished his career at Shades Valley High with 73 touchdowns, including 66 in his last two seasons. After redshirting last season at MSU, Mixon has used his explosiveness to make 12 catches for 145 yards and two touchdowns. He also has 13 carries for 56 yards.
After Collins left for Florida, wide receivers coach Billy Gonzales took over MSU’s effort to recruit Mixon. Mixon attended several MSU camps, including Big Dawg Camp and individual camps.
Gonzales remembers being impressed with the speed Mixon showed at those camps.
“The thing you saw was the explosiveness,” Gonzales said. “We lined him up in the slot a couple of times in camp and boom. He was explosive off the line of scrimmage. I think that was the biggest thing. He had great speed and could change direction.”
Because of his speed, senior wide receiver Fred Ross nicknamed Mixon “pocket rocket.”
Payne signed with Alabama and is a starting nose guard for the Crimson Tide. Payne had interest from several SEC and Atlantic Coast Conference teams. Because of Payne’s recruitment, some big-time programs saw Mixon on a weekly basis, but he said the offers never came.
Mixon recalls getting ready to sign with MSU and Alabama sent him a National Letter of Intent to sign on signing day. He decided to stick with his commitment.
“I was just blessed they saw something in me others didn’t,” Mixon said. “I’m trying to take every chance I get here and make the best of it.”
Mixon had two catches for 55 yards and a 37-yard touchdown, the first in his career, in a 38-14 loss to Auburn on Oct. 8. He followed that with a career-best four catches for 69 yards and a 44-yard touchdown in a 28-21 double-overtime loss to BYU on Oct. 14.
Smith felt like the lack of offers was motivation for Mixon, and that the receiver had a chip on his shoulder and wanted to prove he could compete in the SEC.
Gonzales said he envisioned Mixon as a slot receiver, but the Bulldogs have involved him in the running game more. He had 20 yards on three carries against Massachusetts on Sept. 24 and 13 yards on three carries against BYU.
“It just makes him so much more valuable with what we’re trying to do,” Gonzales said. “Now the defense has to defend the entire field. It just gives you another opportunity. It’s another weapon.
“As an offense, you start looking for ways to make big plays, and he’s a guy that can make a big play out of a small play. You can toss him a bubble and he can take it 20, 30, 40 yards.”
Smith compared Mixon to former Nebraska running back Ameer Abdullah, who finished his college career with 4,588 yards on 813 carries and 39 touchdowns. He had 73 catches for 690 yards and seven touchdowns. He has played in two games this season for the NFL’s Detroit Lions. He is currently on the reserved/injured list.
Smith recalls telling people he thought Mixon was going to be SEC Freshman of the Year.
“He’s the most dynamic player I’ve seen in a long time,” Smith said. “He’s got great vision, he’s got great patience as a runner, and he has really good hands as a receiver. He runs good routes and he’s a great person.”
Mixon, who rooms with Ross, said he has tried to learn as much as can from Ross, who holds the MSU record for catches with 166, a record he broke last week against Kentucky.
Ross said he saw Mixon take strides in the summer and he hasn’t been surprised by Mixon’s production.
“I know any time we get Keith the ball, it could be a touchdown. It’s definitely pressure off me,” Ross said. “I don’t think anybody else is going to overlook him for the rest of the year. He can really play football.”
Smith said he hasn’t seen Mixon play in person, but he has watched him play on television. He said he will be in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, on Nov. 12 to watch MSU play Alabama.
Smith, who was a punter at Alabama, hoped Alabama was going to offer Mixon a scholarship. When Alabama came in late, he encouraged Mixon to stick with MSU.
Smith said he exchanges text messages with Mixon and his father, Keith Sr., regularly. Smith has encouraged Mixon and has no doubt he is in the right place.
“I have ultimate confidence he’s going to do great things at Mississippi State,” Smith said.
Follow Dispatch sports writer Ben Wait on Twitter @bcwait
Ben Wait reports on Mississippi State University sports for The Dispatch.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 36 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.