Photo Credit: USF Athletics
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I have had the honor of covering the University of South Florida Bulls for the last two years. Within those two years, the Bulls had a semi par season and a horrible one. The 2018 season was a promising year as USF got off to a seven-game winning streak. The problem was the wheels fell off and they lost their final six games. The 2019 season was a disaster as the Bulls only won four games and lost eight. One of the brightest parts of both seasons was a tight end, Mitchell Wilcox. Wilcox became a fan favorite. He made many big plays when the Bulls needed them. He was hoping to be a second or third-round pick in last month’s NFL draft. He would have been a higher pick after his junior year but decided to come back for his senior season.
Mitchell Wilcox is a five year player for the University of South Florida Bulls. He was redshirted as a freshman. His freshman year he played nine games. In those nine games, he had 12 receptions for 278 yards averaging 23.2 yards a catch. He also had two touchdowns in his freshman year. His sophomore year was similar to his freshman year. Wilcox played in the same amount of games, which was nine. He had 17 receptions for 158 yards averaging 9.3 yards per catch. He also had the same amount of touchdown catches which was two. The last two years of Wilcox’s college career were his best. His best year, as mentioned above, was his junior year. In that junior year he played in 10 games, with 43 receptions, 540 yards, 12.6 yards per catch, and two touchdowns.
In his final and senior season, he played in 11 games and had 28 receptions, 350 yards, 12.5 yards per catch, and five touchdowns. Mitchell Wilcox has three different records for USF. The first record he has is the most yards with 904 career yards which surpassed Sean Price who had 897. The second record is 468 yards for a season surpassing the 390 yards that Trevor Hypolite had in 1997. Wilcox also took another record from Hypolite as well having 35 receptions passing Hypolite 34. He is an overall good player. Many would say he would be a good draft pick in the late second round early third round. Even Mel Kiper, one ESPN’s top draft analysis, had Wilcox going as the third or fourth-best tight ends in the draft. Wilcox didn’t get drafted at all.
Instead, Mitchell Wilcox signed an undrafted free agent contract with the Cincinnati Bengals. The Bengals didn’t draft a tight end. This was big for Cincinnati. He will fit in well with the first overall draft pick Joe Burrow. The Bengals will look to make some impact because the Pittsburg Steelers and Baltimore Ravens are strong as they normally are. In my eyes, the teams that passed on him made a mistake. Many will say I am biased because I got to watch the Bulls the past two years. I think Wilcox is a playmaker. He will shine in the NFL. He may never be Rob Gronkowski, but he will be fine playing for the Bengals.
Author Profile
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Bradley Walker serves as the Director of Operations for NGSC Sports, bringing extensive experience across collegiate, professional, and amateur athletics. His coverage spans USF Athletics, including football, baseball, lacrosse, and softball, as well as University of Tampa baseball.
Bradley also provides coverage of minor league baseball with the Clearwater Threshers and Major League Baseball with the Tampa Bay Rays. On the national stage, he covers college football bowl games and conference championship matchups, along with premier golf events across the PGA Tour, LIV Golf, and LPGA Tour.
In addition to his reporting work, Bradley is the play-by-play announcer for Pinellas Park High School Patriots football, lending his voice and insight to Friday night lights.
He is also an active podcast host and contributor, serving as a co-host on the P&W Sports Report and hosting The Walker Report, where he delivers in-depth sports analysis, interviews, and coverage across multiple levels of competition.
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