Join the mix
There are certain egos – those of the over-inflated variety, in particular – that might be incapable of handling the trip Terry Mixon is on.
But Mixon, the latest addition to Eastern Washington University’s unbeaten football team, seems completely comfortable with the circuitous and humbling route his career has taken, leaving him scuffling for playing time in Cheney rather than wowing NFL scouts at a high-profile Pacific-10 Conference school.
“God sent me on this path,” Mixon, a two-time junior college All-America defensive back, said earlier this week about having landed at Eastern after transferring from Washington State. “I’m a real Christian-type dude, so I don’t think anywhere you end up is bad.
“Yeah, people are going to say it’s just a Division I-AA school, but we work just as hard as D-I players here. If you look at people in the NFL, a lot of them come from smaller schools. I think it’s because they push you harder, and I needed that push.”
Mixon, after starring for two seasons at Grossmont Community College near San Diego, where he was considered one of the best defensive back prospects in the country, was being wooed by some of college football’s elite programs during fall 2006. A five-star recruit, he originally signed a letter of intent with Arizona State, but opted out after the Sun Devils replaced their head coach, Dirk Koetter, with Dennis Erickson.
After a brief fling with California, Mixon ended up signing with Washington State, where he was expected to have an immediate impact in the Cougars’ secondary. But he showed up at fall camp overweight and out of shape, prompting WSU coach Bill Doba to suggest he was only a Big Mac away from becoming a linebacker.
When he suffered a hamstring injury after only three days of practice, he all but dropped off Doba’s radar.
Mixon claimed his weight problem was the result of having undergone surgery to repair a broken ankle he suffered at Grossmont last November.
“I couldn’t work out with my foot,” he said. “I really couldn’t run at all, so I ended up gaining a lot of weight.”
The 6-foot-1 Mixon arrived at WSU weighing 230 pounds – 15 more than his playing weight as a sophomore at Grossmont – and, because of the hamstring injury, never got many reps as a Cougar. Still, it wasn’t until after WSU opened its season at Wisconsin – and left him at home – that Mixon decided to transfer.
When asked for specifics behind his decision to leave, Mixon said, “I’d rather keep that personal.”
But he insisted it had nothing to do with WSU’s players or coaches, noting he still stays in contact with several of his former Cougars teammates.
“I really just felt it wasn’t the right fit,” he said, “so, I had to adjust, like all humans do.”
To be immediately eligible, Mixon had to find a school that was on the quarter system and hadn’t started classes.
He didn’t have to look far.
After a brief phone conversation with EWU defensive coordinator Jody Sears, he decided to make the short move to Cheney.
“I liked the school,” Mixon said, “and it was easier for me. Instead of driving from Pullman all the way back to California, it was right down the street.”
So Mixon and his fiancé, Tracy Washington, who are expecting their first child in early November, packed their things and made the short move. They arrived in time for Mixon to complete his enrollment paperwork and play – albeit sparingly – in last Saturday’s 41-31 non-conference win over UC Davis.
Mixon, in his Eagles debut, made a couple of solo tackles and assisted on three others from his safety position, giving Eastern fans a glimpse of the physical talent he possesses.
“He’s only been here seven days,” Eastern coach Paul Wulff said earlier this week. “But in those seven days, he’s lost a little bit of weight and, mentally, he’s picked some things up, which is good. I think he’s done as much as you can possibly do in seven days, so we’re very happy from that standpoint.”
Mixon dropped out of the sky and into the Big Sky Conference at a time when the Eagles needed him most. Because of early season-ending injuries to Gregor Smith (shoulder), Jesse Hoffman (elbow) and Ethen Robinson (Achilles tendon), Eastern was down to only one experienced free safety. While he is listed as a backup rover, Mixon could spell sophomore Kevin Hatch at free safety, if needed.
“We were very fortunate to acquire somebody on such last notice,” Wulff said. “We have a huge need right now at safety because of the three season-ending injuries we’ve already had at that position.”
Mixon, despite his vagabond past, insists he has found his comfort zone at Eastern.
“It’s been easy making friends here,” he said. “And it’s nice not having everyone on me about my weight. The coaches tell me that no matter how much you weigh, if you can get to the ball, it’s cool. If I get too heavy – like a D-lineman, like 270 or something – then I know I have a problem. But 230? I’ve seen some safeties I knew who were bigger than that.”
Still, the Eagles have Mixon on a special diet, and they’re making him do extra conditioning drills after practice in an effort to get him up to speed as soon as possible.
Wulff is convinced that when he gets there, Mixon will become an invaluable member of the team, on and off the field.
“We’re still finding out what he can do,” Wulff said. “It’s going to take a little time for us to get a read on him, and for him to get a feel for playing at this level.”