'I'm faster than I was before.' Kentucky RB commit Tovani Mizell is better than ever after ACL surgery

Tovani “Boogeyman” Mizell was denied his senior high school football season. What should have been filled with team victories, individual accolades, and a deep playoff run before heading off to college, was instead filled with patience, a lengthy break from football, and even some doubt.

Mizell, who committed to Kentucky in June 2023 and will arrive on campus in June, unknowingly tore his ACL during fall camp. While going through routine drills, he planted his foot wrong and heard a pop. The pain was manageable but warranted an MRI, which he wouldn’t get back for over a week. In the meantime, Mizell felt confident enough to continue practicing at a lighter pace — until he reaggravated the injury.

A star running back for Western High School in Florida, the 6-foot-1, 210-pound rusher (ranked No. 742 overall in the class of 2024, per the On3 Industry Ranking) was then forced to miss his entire senior campaign. He would have to undergo surgery on his right knee.

“I took some time off (after the initial pop) but then I went back to practice and was practicing for about a good week,” Mizell told KSR on Tuesday. “Felt fine, and then one of the practices I went up for a pass, and they threw a back-shoulder fade and when I went to adjust my body, my knee gave out on me again… And that second time hurt worse.

“I actually ended up getting the results back from the previous test the next day and they said I tore my ACL. So this whole time I was practicing for about a week with a torn ACL and honestly didn’t even know it was torn. But the second time I was like, I probably messed it up a little bit more. I ended up tearing my meniscus as well and then tweaking my MCL.”

Mizell underwent surgery to repair his knee on September 6 and was officially cleared (to his surprise) to play football by doctors this past Thursday, May 2 — nearly eight full months of recovery. He did his best to stay in high spirits throughout the entire process though, leaning on his parents the entire way. They helped keep their son’s head up whenever it might drop down. Mom’s cooking helped, too.

“Mentally, I was ready for it,” Mizell said of his recovery. “But I would also say it caught me off guard. You obviously never expect to have an injury like that. It was a little shocking. But I had my family with me, I had God, they all helped me get through the process together and it helped me a lot.”

IM BAACCKKKK 😈 It's been exactly 8mos since ACL/Meniscus surgery & I'm CLEARED to return to sport!! AGTG🙌🏽 Thank you to Dr DeSimone & Bill/Joey @ Aries PT for getting me right #BoogeymanReturns @UKFootball @CoachJ_Boulware @UKCoachStoops @BushHamdan @vincemarrow @Mike_Stoops41 pic.twitter.com/VGrkeeKwsV

— Tovani “Boogeyman” Mizell (@TovaniMizell) May 7, 2024

As he went through rehab, it didn’t take long for Mizell to gain his confidence back. He started with simple flexing and bending movements with his knee in the early stages. Two months post-surgery, he was able to start jogging again — the first major milestone. Once he hit the five-month mark, he was able to return to track and field while continuing to get back into shape. By month six, he was participating in shot put and slowly working his way back into doing relay races.

Throughout it all, Mizell only missed one of Western’s games, which happened to be the first one post-surgery. He gained a new perspective as a running back observing from the sidelines, watching opposing linebackers with a close eye. He only missed a handful of practices, too, refusing to miss out on the chance to coach and watch his younger brother Trevion, also on the football team, develop and grow on the field.

Now over eight months past his surgery date, Mizell is feeling like himself again. Actually, scratch that — he’s feeling more like an upgraded version of himself.

“Now I feel like I’m faster than I was before, a lot faster than I was before,” he said. “I’m also planning on attending New Balance Nationals this summer as well before I get to Kentucky.”

The 2024 New Balance Nationals are set for June 13-16 in Philadelphia, a little over a month away. Mizell intends to participate in the 100-meter dash and bring a personal best time with him to Lexington. He’s actually scheduled to arrive on campus at UK on June 8, but he’ll only stay for a few days before heading to Nationals.

After that, Mizell’s only focus will be on football. He has lofty goals for himself at Kentucky, too. Not all that shocking to hear from a high schooler who also had opportunities to play football at the likes of Oklahoma and Georgia.

“I’m anxious to get back on that field,” he added. “I’m coming in to start, that’s my main goal. I have big aspirations for myself. I want to be the next best thing. I want to win a Heisman. I got goals I need to achieve. So I’m coming in no games, all about business, earning my starting position, and showing the world what I got.”

Those words will be music to the ears of Kentucky running backs coach Jay Boulware, who recruited Mizell and stuck with him throughout the entire rehab process. Neither side ever wavered on their commitment. Boulware encouraged Mizell to take a step back, appreciate his final year of high school, and take care of his mental — advice that the high schooler took to heart.

“The first person I told (about the ACL injury) was Coach Boulware,” Mizell said. “I was a little nervous to tell him, but when I told him he sounded completely fine. He was like it happens to everybody, we had a couple recruits in the past that it happened to… He was just telling me it happens and they still love me, they just want me to take time, enjoy myself, and get myself back better than ever so I’m ready for the year.

“They kept on recruiting me the same exact way when I was playing.”

Kentucky never hesitated on Mizell after his surgery, and he returned the favor. Support from the Wildcats came from more than just the coaching staff though. Mizell posted regular updates of his recovery on social media and was amazed by the love he was consistently shown by the Big Blue Nation over the last several months. He hopes to reward them with some exciting football this fall.

“I wanna shout out the UK fanbase,” he said. “They always had my back and were supporting me throughout this process. Big shoutout to them as well.”