Subhead

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

That saying might be a bit premature in this case, but there is an element of legitimacy. After all, it’s not unheard of for an SMU linebacker to wear jersey No. 44 and start making plays and to force people to take notice early in his career.

The difference is that in 2013, No. 44 doesn’t have dreadlocks peeking out from under his helmet, now that Taylor Reed is gone.

In this case, the player in question is Jackson Mitchell, a freshman walk-on from Carroll High School in Southlake, Texas. To suggest he has replaced Reed is unfair to both of them, but four games into his college career, Mitchell already has forced his way on the field, even ahead of some of his more heralded scholarship members of the freshman class. He already plays on several special teams — he made one of the two biggest special teams plays of the young season blocked a punt Saturday against TCU — and has earned some playing time as a reserve inside linebacker.

“He’s like a lot of players from his (high) school,” SMU defensive coordinator Tom Mason said. “That place seems to put out a lot of smart, ‘headsy’ players who know how to work hard. That’s what he is.”

Despite eye-popping numbers (142 tackles, 12 tackles for loss, a pair of sacks, an interception and a fumble recovery) at a perennial powerhouse high school, Mitchell was not the target of a big recruiting war, in part because of his size (he said he now 215 pounds on his 6-foot-1-inch frame). He considered offers from Stephen F. Austin and the Air Force Academy before deciding to walk on at SMU.

“I visited the Air Force Academy before I visited SMU,” Mitchell said. “The campus up there is beautiful — everything is nice — and I got to go to class with some of the players. But if you’re going to go the academy route, it’s something you had better really be set on. You’re going to carry 21 hours of classes, and you have boot camp. It wasn’t that I couldn’t do it, but I didn’t know if I’d be happy there.

“Plus, my dream had always been to play big-time college football. SFA is a good program, but it’s I-AA (Football Championship Subdivision).”

Ironically, Mitchell’s recruitment also might have been hurt by the success of his high school team and the large number of talented players battling for playing time and scholarships.

“I didn’t even start my junior year,” Mitchell said. “Coach Mason said that was kind of a bump in the recruiting process, because so many coaches want to recruit players earlier and earlier.”

Mitchell said that while he didn’t necessarily expect to get on the field in his first season on The Hilltop, he is not entirely surprised, either.

“Although I didn’t have big-time offers, I have always been confident in my play,” Mitchell said, “and not to sound arrogant, but I like to think my work ethic is unmatched. I’ll do whatever it takes to contribute. I think (the SMU coaches) wanted to redshirt all of the linebackers, but when Randall (Joyner) got hurt, I guess they looked at the depth chart and wanted someone who could help out on special teams, at least.”

Playing at Carroll, Mitchell was used to playing in pressure situations, but he said it quickly became clear that playing Div. I football would be an entirely new experience.

“For the Montana State game, I was super-excited,” Mitchell said. “It was my first college football game. I don’t think I was nervous, really, but it was different from high school — that’s for sure.

“Then, when we pulled up at Texas A&M, I walked around on Kyle Field and just looked around. I thought, ‘this place is huge,’ and those looked like the steepest stands I had ever seen. But then as soon as the first kickoff, all of those things go away. Once you get hit, it goes away, and you’re playing football.”

Mitchell said his family probably is no more surprised than he is of his early success at SMU.

“I think they’re just proud of the work I have put in,” he said. “They saw me work in high school to get on the field there, so they know how much I love playing and how hard I’ll work to play. So I wouldn’t say they’re surprised. I’d say they’re proud.”