Mitchell has touchdown catches in all four of his previous CFP games with Georgia
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — For Texas receiver Adonai Mitchell, there’s no mystery surrounding the College Football Playoff.
Monday’s semifinal matchup between third-seeded Texas (12-1) and second-seeded Washington (13-0) in the Sugar Bowl will be the fifth CFP game of Mitchell’s college career. And the transfer from Georgia likes to think his experience winning two national titles with the Bulldogs will benefit a Longhorns program that hasn’t entered the postseason with a shot at a national title since the 2009 season.
“Confidence is always a good thing. It’s good energy that people can feed off of, good energy that’s contagious,” Mitchell, who has touchdown catches in all four of his previous CFP games, said on Friday.
“That’s just exactly what you need … ,” he continued. “You get three weeks to prepare, the other team gets three weeks to prepare, so you can be caught off guard a lot. And just keeping your composure, keeping poised in the stadium, that’s very crucial in games like these.”
The 6-foot-4 Mitchell grew up in Texas, and although he was thriving at Georgia and could have been part of the Bulldogs’ ultimately unsuccessful bid for a third straight national title, the opportunity to play closer to home — and his young daughter — was something he couldn’t pass up.
Taking his pass-catching skills to Texas turned out to be a fortuitous move for him and the Longhorns.
“I thought when I came here I was a complete player,” Mitchell said. “I wasn’t. I had a lot to learn. I had a lot of experiences that I had to go through.”
This season, he said, he refined his ability to manage all the work off the field that goes into excelling on it, from workouts and meetings to practice habits and execution.
This season, he has caught 51 passes for 813 yards and 10 TDs.
“Certainly, he’s played in big games and playoff games and championship games before,” Texas offensive coordinator Kyle Flood said. “He’s got a skill set that we were lacking before he got here.
“He is the complementary receiver to X (Xavier Worthy) really that we needed to kind of make the field a little bit more open for both of those guys and for a guy like JT (Ja’Tavion Sanders),” Flood continued. “His role in what we do in the game plan is critical. I think he’s got an air of confidence about him that I think is good for everybody.”
