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Elijah Mitchell

UL’s Elijah Mitchell shelved by injury; will have surgery

LAFAYETTE – If the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns are going to rally to earn a sixth bowl berth in the last 7 years, they’ll have to do it without rising freshman star Elijah Mitchell.
The first-year running back from Erath High missed Thursday’s 24-7 home victory over Texas State and will be sidelined the rest of the season with an injured left foot that he suffered in the Oct. 7 win at Idaho.
“We looked at it again today,” coach Mark Hudspeth said on Friday, “and unfortunately our fears were confirmed. Elijah will have surgery on the foot and will be out for the rest of the year. He should be ready for January.
“You’re not sure how those things happen in the heat of the action. Someone rolled up on that foot.”
The setback came just as Mitchell was beginning to form a backfield tandem with power-running redshirt freshman Trey Ragas, adding a smooth-stepping long distance threat to Ragas’s thrusts between the tackles.
In the season-opening 51-48 win over Southeastern Louisiana, Mitchell showed he belonged on the college stage with 56 yards and a touchdown on 11 attempts.
That promise grew one week later when, despite a road loss at Tulsa, the former EHS Bobcat had 84 yards on just 8 carries, scoring on a 20-yard run and having another dash of 28 yards. He also scored on a 19-yard reception.
There were setbacks, to be expected among freshmen, as Mitchell was limited to a combined 10 yards on 10 attempts in road games against Texas A&M and Idaho.
But in between, in the 56-50 shootout home loss to UL Monroe, Mitchell recorded the first 100-yard game of his budding career with 107 yards on 13 carries, touchdowns of 1 and 10 yards and a long gain of 38.
Hudspeth put him on the shelf for Texas State. Then the decision was made to have surgery to preserve his longterm health and value to the program.
For the year, Mitchell has 257 yards and 4 touchdowns on 42 carries – averaging a robust 6.1 yards per carry – as well as 3 receptions for 25 yards and a fifth score.
“Elijah is a strong runner, one who’s got everything you look for at the position,” Hudspeth said. “He’s not small (5-11, 221), and he’s not big and slow. He’s got good speed and outstanding ball skills. And he has excellent lateral movement.”
Mitchell was one of the prize recruits of 2017 for the Cajuns after rushing for 1,903 yards and 28 touchdowns as an EHS senior in 2016. For his high school career, he totaled 4,045 yards and 50 touchdowns on 457 attempts (8.9 yards per carry).
He missed action due to injuries as a senior at Erath, playing fully in only 8 games.
Mitchell is still considered a likely candidate to follow in the footsteps of current New York Jets rookie Elijah McGuire as the next running back star of the Cajun program.
That role will have to wait until the 2018 season, though, as Ragas and others share the load in the UL ground game.
In Thursday’s win over Texas State, Ragas had 10 carries for 72 yards and senior Darius Hoggins chipped in with 42 on eight.
“We’re fortunate to have depth at the running back position,” Hudspeth said. “Others will have to step up. We were rolling with two freshmen (Ragas and Mitchell) and it’s exciting to think about what the next three seasons can be like with them.”
Now 3-3 overall and 2-1 in the Sun Belt Conference after their win over Texas State, the Cajuns travel to face Arkansas State next Thursday in a nationally televised contest.

EDITOR’S NOTE: As a freshman player, Mitchell was not allowed to talk to media members during his initial college campaign.

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