Indiana University Athletics
Former Walk-On Paige Living His Dream
10/12/2016 6:40:00 PM | Football
By: Nick Reith
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Mitchell Paige remembers the feeling from his first day with the Indiana football team, the opening day of 2012 fall camp. More than anything, he remembers the first person he saw.
"It was Adam Replogle," Paige said, recalling the towering frame of the 6'3", 290-pound senior defensive lineman. "I was about 30 pounds lighter and an inch and a half shorter, and I'm not that big now. I was a little shell-shocked when I saw him. The intensity of practice was also a little different for me. I usually didn't even tie my cleats at practice when I was in high school."
Adjusting to college football was a steep learning curve for Paige, who joined the Hoosiers without a scholarship five years ago. He didn't receive any offers coming out of high school, and he hadn't committed to the thought of walking on to a Big Ten football program until he received a call from Indiana's coaching staff that summer.
From the end of that phone call through the summer before his junior season, Paige embarked on a relentless grind in pursuit of a football scholarship. It wasn't easy to get to where he is today, Paige said, but it was never meant to be easy.
"You have to find the little victories," Paige said. "That's one thing I tell the new guys, since I've been through it. Whether it's one play a day or if you just get a step on somebody, you have to find things that keep you going. It's a long season, and a long year, if you don't find something to keep you motivated to get up at 5:30 a.m."
Paige's first goal was to simply get on the field, whatever that took. Having been a do-it-all player for his high school, Guerin Catholic, Paige looked for any opportunity to make an impact. For Paige, that began on the punt return team.
"It was a lot of preparation for the first three years, and that's something that took the most preparation," Paige said about fielding punts. "It's different than high school. The ball is a lot higher and the guys are coming a lot faster, so it took some getting used to. I've probably caught more punts than passes since I've been here. After practice in my first three years, I caught punts every day for hours."
At the end of the 2015 spring season, Paige secured his first football scholarship. It was a triumphant moment, one he'd worked three years to achieve, but it was only the beginning.
What the Hoosiers didn't realize at the start of the 2015 season was that, in those three seasons off the field, Paige developed into Indiana's secret weapon in the receiving corps.
Paige's career took off in his first season on scholarship. He led all Indiana skill players with six touchdowns, ranked second with 57 catches and third with 684 yards. On special teams, Paige tallied 199 punt return touchdowns and matched an IU record with two TD returns, earning honorable mention All-Big Ten accolades as a return specialist.
"For one, I knew the playbook inside and out, probably better than anything I've known in my life," Paige said as he broke down the keys to his success last season. "I took a lot of time studying and watching film when I had no chance to play. I also learned from guys like Shane Wynn, finding out ways that an undersized receiver like me can get downfield and find spaces."
This season, Paige's final year on the field for Indiana, the utility man is providing contributions anywhere he can. He's already amassed 261 yards on 22 catches, scoring touchdowns against Michigan State and Ohio State. In the win over the Spartans, Indiana's first in 10 years, Paige added a TD pass on a trick play to his first receiving touchdown of the season.
"That was an unreal catch," Paige said regarding quarterback Richard Lagow, who hauled in the score. "I was watching that on film, and I don't know if I would've been able to catch that. I'm confident in my hands, but that was a tough catch."
The biggest decider of Paige's success at the collegiate level might be his attitude and his desire to lead his peers. Even with people doubting his chances of making it as a walk-on, Paige knew that his effort would make an impact on Indiana football.
"Throughout my life, I've always been a vital part of whatever team I'm on, so that's the way I saw myself," Paige said. "When that wasn't happening, it was frustrating, but I had to find some victories. It helped knowing that in the past, I had done things people said I couldn't do, and I was ready to do it again here."
So far, Paige has made good on his personal promises. He has limited time to further his impression on the program, but Paige hopes that he and his teammates can be remembered for one thing: sparking the ascension of the Indiana Hoosiers.
"It means the world to me," Paige said about playing for Indiana. "I wouldn't be here without it. I wouldn't have gone through three years of toil to get here. Even looking back, I still don't know how I did that or how any walk-ons go through it. It's a tough road. But coming out here on this field—especially growing up as an IU fan—is the coolest thing in the world. I've realized this year that this is the kind of thing you dream about growing up."
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Mitchell Paige remembers the feeling from his first day with the Indiana football team, the opening day of 2012 fall camp. More than anything, he remembers the first person he saw.
"It was Adam Replogle," Paige said, recalling the towering frame of the 6'3", 290-pound senior defensive lineman. "I was about 30 pounds lighter and an inch and a half shorter, and I'm not that big now. I was a little shell-shocked when I saw him. The intensity of practice was also a little different for me. I usually didn't even tie my cleats at practice when I was in high school."
Adjusting to college football was a steep learning curve for Paige, who joined the Hoosiers without a scholarship five years ago. He didn't receive any offers coming out of high school, and he hadn't committed to the thought of walking on to a Big Ten football program until he received a call from Indiana's coaching staff that summer.
From the end of that phone call through the summer before his junior season, Paige embarked on a relentless grind in pursuit of a football scholarship. It wasn't easy to get to where he is today, Paige said, but it was never meant to be easy.
"You have to find the little victories," Paige said. "That's one thing I tell the new guys, since I've been through it. Whether it's one play a day or if you just get a step on somebody, you have to find things that keep you going. It's a long season, and a long year, if you don't find something to keep you motivated to get up at 5:30 a.m."
Paige's first goal was to simply get on the field, whatever that took. Having been a do-it-all player for his high school, Guerin Catholic, Paige looked for any opportunity to make an impact. For Paige, that began on the punt return team.
"It was a lot of preparation for the first three years, and that's something that took the most preparation," Paige said about fielding punts. "It's different than high school. The ball is a lot higher and the guys are coming a lot faster, so it took some getting used to. I've probably caught more punts than passes since I've been here. After practice in my first three years, I caught punts every day for hours."
At the end of the 2015 spring season, Paige secured his first football scholarship. It was a triumphant moment, one he'd worked three years to achieve, but it was only the beginning.
What the Hoosiers didn't realize at the start of the 2015 season was that, in those three seasons off the field, Paige developed into Indiana's secret weapon in the receiving corps.
Paige's career took off in his first season on scholarship. He led all Indiana skill players with six touchdowns, ranked second with 57 catches and third with 684 yards. On special teams, Paige tallied 199 punt return touchdowns and matched an IU record with two TD returns, earning honorable mention All-Big Ten accolades as a return specialist.
"For one, I knew the playbook inside and out, probably better than anything I've known in my life," Paige said as he broke down the keys to his success last season. "I took a lot of time studying and watching film when I had no chance to play. I also learned from guys like Shane Wynn, finding out ways that an undersized receiver like me can get downfield and find spaces."
This season, Paige's final year on the field for Indiana, the utility man is providing contributions anywhere he can. He's already amassed 261 yards on 22 catches, scoring touchdowns against Michigan State and Ohio State. In the win over the Spartans, Indiana's first in 10 years, Paige added a TD pass on a trick play to his first receiving touchdown of the season.
"That was an unreal catch," Paige said regarding quarterback Richard Lagow, who hauled in the score. "I was watching that on film, and I don't know if I would've been able to catch that. I'm confident in my hands, but that was a tough catch."
The biggest decider of Paige's success at the collegiate level might be his attitude and his desire to lead his peers. Even with people doubting his chances of making it as a walk-on, Paige knew that his effort would make an impact on Indiana football.
"Throughout my life, I've always been a vital part of whatever team I'm on, so that's the way I saw myself," Paige said. "When that wasn't happening, it was frustrating, but I had to find some victories. It helped knowing that in the past, I had done things people said I couldn't do, and I was ready to do it again here."
So far, Paige has made good on his personal promises. He has limited time to further his impression on the program, but Paige hopes that he and his teammates can be remembered for one thing: sparking the ascension of the Indiana Hoosiers.
"It means the world to me," Paige said about playing for Indiana. "I wouldn't be here without it. I wouldn't have gone through three years of toil to get here. Even looking back, I still don't know how I did that or how any walk-ons go through it. It's a tough road. But coming out here on this field—especially growing up as an IU fan—is the coolest thing in the world. I've realized this year that this is the kind of thing you dream about growing up."
Players Mentioned
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