It’s no secret Grossmont has struggled in football the previous years. However, Mason Mitchell is looking to change that.
Mitchell Is a former arena football player for the Stockton Lightning, which led to his start in coaching.
“Coaching kind of fell into my lap,” Mitchell said. “I just got done playing some arena football and got a call from one of my mentors who asked if I’d be interested in coaching and I said yes. He said stay by the phone, you’re gonna get a call in a few hours.’”
That phone call was from Luther Burbank High School In Sacramento, where he coached the defensive line from 2010 to 2012. When asked what he learned from coaching at the high school level, Miller said, “You learn to simplify things because when you’re coaching young men, the simpler the material is, the easier it is for them to retain it.”
Mitchell then went on to coach at American River College in Sacramento from 2013 to 2018. He was the defensive line and run game coordinator, providing knowledge for both offensive and defensive playmaking.
“I learned that coaching football is more than Xs and being a teacher and a mentor, to help young men be the best version of themselves.”
After six years as coordinator, he moved on to Humboldt State University in Arcata, California, where he became the assistant coach for the next two seasons. “It taught me the inner workings of running a football team from bed checks, to buying flight tickets to organizing bus rides,” Mitchell said. “A lot of stuff the average fan doesn’t see.”
One season later, Mitchell moved south to Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, California, to become its new defensive coordinator. Under his coaching, the team allowed 14.1 points per game overall throughout the season, going 9-2, and 4-1 in conference play.
”What I learned there was that some coaches – I’m not going to say names, but some coaches – do things without rhyme or reason,” he said. “When you do things for a reason, it’s so much better.”
In 2024 Mitchell was offered the head coaching position, replacing long-time Coach Michael Jordan. The Griffins are currently one and four overall and zero and one in conference play, getting their first home victory against Antelope Valley.
When asked how they can carry the momentum of this victory throughout the rest of season, Mitchell said: “We need to be consistent and put the players in the right. It is like physical chess. You want to bait someone into doing something they don’t want to do while also dominating them physically.”
Hopefully, with his wealth of knowledge and experience, Mitchell can guide Grossmont toward a new era in Grossmont football.
“I would like to be a member of the community, whether student or faculty,” he said. “We have an open-door policy, and I want to help in any way we can.”