Bristol native Adam Mitchell stands out with pair of TD catches

BRISTOL, Tenn. (Oct. 2, 2014) – While the ETSU football team went on the road for Thursday night’s Blue-Gold scrimmage at Tennessee High School’s historic Stone Castle, freshman wide receiver Adam Mitchell (Bristol, Tenn.) felt right at home.

Back on the field where he played his high school football, Mitchell provided the local fans some special highlights thanks to three receptions for 55 yards – which included a pair of touchdown catches of eight and 38 yards. In addition to Mitchell, fellow wide receiver Drake Powell (Clinton) enjoyed his second straight impressive performance, following up his efforts in last week’s Game Time 101 game by collecting 77 yards on four receptions, with touchdown catches of 30 and 40 yards.

Using a modified scoring system, the catches by Mitchell and Powell had left the game tied at 14-14 until freshman running back Cory Colder (Ashburn, Md.) gave the Blue team the 21-14 victory with a 6-yard touchdown run as time expired in regulation.

“I liked a lot of what I saw out of our wide receivers tonight, and it was good to see guys like Adam Mitchell come back and play well on their high school field,” said Torbush, whose team has a total of three former Tennessee High players including offensive lineman Josh Pendleton (Bristol, Tenn.) and defensive back Jack Jones (Bristol, Tenn.). “Just like last Saturday I saw a lot of good things, but we also see a lot of things we need to work on. I’m sure our coaches are going to be excited to look at the film and break it down.”

While Mitchell and Powell led the way for the wide receivers, Gold quarterback Jared Drake (Westerville, Ohio) posted a team-best 47 yards rushing on six carries. Other rushing numbers included 46 yards on eight carries by freshman tailback Jajuan Lankford (South Pittsburg) and 41 yards on five carries by Colder.

Through the air, freshman quarterback Hagen Owenby (Powell) connected with Powell on the 30-yard strike and hit Mitchell on his 38-yard scoring play. Meanwhile, fellow quarterbacks Nick Sexton (Seymour) and Demetrius Anthony (Fountain Inn, S.C.) also had touchdown passes, with Sexton hitting Powell on the 40-yard toss and Anthony making the 8-yard pass to Mitchell.

On the defensive side of the ball, defensive lineman Francisco Rodriguez (Chattanooga, Tenn.) led the way with 4.5 tackles on the day, while defensive backs Courtney Heard  (Chattanooga, Tenn.) and Tony Welch (Pickerington, Ohio) both had interceptions on the night.

The Bucs will be on the field for their third of four public scrimmages when they travel to Kingsport, to play at Dobyns-Bennett High School’s J. Fred Johnson Stadium on Thursday, Oct. 23. ETSU’s final scrimmage will be on campus during Homecoming activities on Saturday, Nov. 1.

For more on ETSU football throughout the 2014-15 season, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the football link.