What will Stanford QB Mike Mitchell Jr. bring to The Farm?
One of the early enrollees for Stanford football is freshman quarterback Mike Mitchell Jr. out of Archbishop Riordan High School in San Francisco, California. Mitchell was a four-year varsity player for the Crusaders, accumulating 10,251 passing yards and 123 touchdowns. As a senior, he threw for a whopping 3,471 yards and 46 touchdowns while only getting picked off four times for a 67% completion rate. On the ground, he rushed for 365 yards and two touchdowns.
Mitchell led the Crusaders to the 2025 CCS Open Division championship game, which they won, defeating Serra 33-13. As a result, he racked up multiple awards such as the WCAL Football All-League Player of the Year and CalHi Sports Football Players of the Year in 2025. Rivals, 247, and ESPN all rated him as a 3-star recruit. Rivals rated him the highest with a rating of 88. His Rivals industry ranking is an 87.37.
In short, Mitchell brings a winning pedigree to The Farm. While sometimes hard to quantify in a statistical sense, being a “winner” is something that matters a lot if you are a quarterback. He has clearly shown an ability to lead a team and be trusted by his teammates.
As far as his physical tools are concerned, Mitchell is listed at 5’11”, 185 pounds. He’s small for a quarterback and so that’s something he’s going to have to overcome. However, there are plenty of small quarterbacks who have found success at the next level. Same with point guards in basketball who are that size.
When looking at his tape, what stands out about Mitchell is his quick release, arm strength, footwork, and vision. A righty, he gets the ball out of his hands quickly and does a good job of evading pressure. He makes the right reads and is capable of making accurate throws whether they be deep, midrange, or short. His footwork is excellent and he’s also in general very quick, able to scramble for big gains when needed. Casting his size aside, there’s a lot to like about Mitchell and reason to have hope that he can become a legit starter in the ACC.
Looking ahead to the spring, it’ll be interesting to see how Mitchell does and how beneficial this extra time on campus is for him. The fact that he’s early enrolling indicates that Stanford is open to the possibility of him being the starter. You wouldn’t have a guy early enroll if that were totally off the table. Stanford football is need of a spark and somebody who can be an instant impact guy out of the gates. It would certainly be fantastic if Mitchell could be such a guy for head coach Tavita Pritchard and general manager Andrew Luck’s program.
Note: Cardinal Sports Report has you covered for all the latest news on Stanford as they begin the Tavita Pritchard era.
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