The Wolfpacker's NC State recruiter of the year: Brian Mitchell

NC State signed at least one athlete at every position on both sides of the ball this week, and each Wolfpack assistant coach played a crucial role in assembling the 2023 recruiting class. With that said, cornerbacks coach Brian Mitchell stood out this cycle.

He signed two cornerbacks, kept the Pack in the running for a few highty-regarded class of 2024 defensive backs and stayed active in the transfer portal.

Four-star cornerback Brandon Cisse was his first commit of the 2023 class and was one of the most impressive evaluations of the Pack’s incoming freshmen. Cisse camped at NC State in June and immediately stood out to the coaching staff.

After running a 4.45 40-yard dash, he excelled in one-on-one competition. Mitchell spent some time talking to the cornerback on the sideline during the camp, and Cisse landed his first power-five offer from the Wolfpack later that day.

NC State made Cisse a priority after that and welcomed him back to campus less than a week later for an unofficial visit. The cornerback ended up shutting down his recruitment and committing to the Wolfpack soon after.

“He’s a better man than he is a coach,” Cisse said after joining the class in June. “It’s not even just about football with Coach Mitchell. He’s a really good guy.”

“His track record speaks for itself. He’s put out great corners. If you just get to know him and get to be around him a little more, he’s really just amazing.” 

Cisse, who was unranked at the time of his offer, is now a four-star recruit and On3’s No. 31 cornerback in the nation. His recruitment was a fantastic evaluation by the coaching staff, and Mitchell did a great job wrapping up his recruitment quickly. Cisse ended up being one of the leaders of the 2023 recruiting class.

Six months later, Mitchell landed his second cornerback commitment of the class from Terrente Hinton. The Wolfpack assistant first reached out to the junior college star towards the beginning of December and, after talking to the cornerback’s family, he was on a plane to visit him within the next couple of days.

Once he arrived and got to meet Hinton in person, he made quite the impression.

“Coach Mitchell, he came prepared. . . and he broke everything down and how he coaches,” Hinton said after receiving an offer from the Pack. “He was on the board writing plays. It was something I ain’t felt in a while, so it was like ‘Ok, he knew what he was talking about.’”

Hinton built a great relationship with Mitchell in a short amount of time, and he is part of the reason the No. 7 junior college cornerback in the nation signed with the Pack this week.

“Through these three weeks, he gave me a crazy vibe that I ain’t really felt from a coach in a while,” Hinton said after his official visits. “I really connected with him fast, and he just keeps building and building it up. 

“I feel like coach Mitchell is a great man and a great coach.”

Additional recruiting notes for Brian Mitchell

• NC State is already in a good spot with defensive back recruiting in the 2024 class thanks in-part to Mitchell. Three-star cornerback Ondre Evans thinks very highly of Mitchell, who has made him a top priority in the 2024 class. Four-star prospect Asaad Brown is strongly considering the Wolfpack (nickles coach Freddie Aughtry-Lindsay is his primary recruiter). Mitchell is also one of the coaches recruiting three-star Providence Day safety Brody Barnhardt, who recently included the Wolfpack in his top-3 schools.
• Mitchell is a significant reason why the Wolfpack was a significant contender for top-100 four-star cornerback Chris Peal this cycle. His coaching and scheme really impressed the Providence Day star and kept NC State involved in his decision until his commitment to Georgia.
• NC State might not be done adding talent to its 2023 defensive back room. Ole Miss graduate transfer cornerback Miles Battle visited NC State last week.