Bryant Mix – Football Star Comes Home To Where It All Started

Bryant Mix – Football Star Comes Home To Where It All Started

THE OUTSIDER
by Justin Geurin

After all, Mix, who is a teacher and coach for Water Valley High School, is a mountain of a man who spent time in the National Football League as a defensive lineman. But if you take the time to get to know him, you will come to realize he is a really nice guy. 

“People think because of my size and football background that I am a mean football coach, but if you ask my wife, she will tell you I am just a big teddy bear,” Mix says. 

Football has definitely been a constant in Mix’s life from a very young age. Born here in Water Valley, Mix could not wait to be a Blue Devil. Not only did he get that chance, but he also was privileged to be a part of Water Valley’s last state championship team during his senior season in 1990. Winning a state title was a dream that began to take shape four years earlier, when Mix was a freshman. The 9th grade team had gone undefeated that season and as a reward, the coaches took the freshmen to Jackson to watch the state championship game between Mendenhall and Amory, where Mix and some of his teammates decided, this could be us in a few years. 

That 1990 season was a special time to be in Water Valley according to Mix. “I have never seen a group of people come together like that,” he said. He credits the coaching staff for keeping the group focused on taking everything one game at a time, but it was after a win over bitter rivals at Lafayette High School that the team started to believe they could not be beaten. 

Mix talks about the game as though it happened yesterday and describes how Water Valley took an early lead but Lafayette began to claw back into the game and was driving down to score. “I will never forget, we ran a stunt on the defensive line and William Campbell blitzed the “A” gap and smoked the quarterback, causing him to fumble and we recovered and went on to win the game,” Mix recalls. 

From there, the momentum continued to build and the town went all out to support the Blue Devils. According to Mix there were signs in all of the downtown businesses keeping track of the team’s record as they continued to win. But being a small town, the local adults also looked out for the athletes. 

“It didn’t matter who you were, or what color you were, or who your parents were, if you were doing something out of line, an adult would chastise you and then call your mother, because they wanted to keep everyone in line and protect the team,” he says. It clearly worked because the Blue Devils went on to finish the season undefeated and state champions. 

For Mix, the football journey did not end there. After spending two years at Northwest Community College, where his team won two state championships, one national championship, and were the runners up for the national title a second time, Mix was one of 16 players who signed a Division I scholarship offer. Mix ended up at Alcorn State University in Natchez, and when his teammate Steve McNair was drafted number three overall in the NFL draft after Mix’s junior year, he began to realize he might have a shot at the NFL as well. After the next season, during workouts for the Senior Bowl, Mix, who was competing against players from across the country remembers thinking, “I can do this.” In April of 1996, Mix was drafted by the Houston Oilers with the 8th pick of the 2nd Round on a day he calls, “the longest of my life.” 

The NFL was a great experience for Mix and gave him a lot of unique opportunities. He was drafted in the same class as 1995 Heisman trophy winner Eddie George and upon his arrival at the team’s facility in Houston, remembers debating, “Should I ask him for his autograph?” 

Some of Mix’s favorite memories are getting to play a preseason game at Memorial Stadium in Jackson in front of friends and family members as well as some of the incredible coaches he got the chance to play under, notably Jeff Fisher, Tony Dungy, and Rod Marinelli, who Mix credits to taking his play to a level he did not know he could reach. But as injuries began to take their toll on his body, Mix reached a point where he could not bounce back the way he wanted to. “I was tired of doing it,” he says, so he decided to retire from football. 

But Mix’s story does not end there. After returning to his home in Natchez, he was contacted by Dr. Simpson, a professor at Alcorn, who urged him to come back and finish his degree, which he finally agreed to do and he says it was one of the best decisions he ever made. 

At that time, a local high school coach contacted Mix about working with their defensive linemen, and before you know it, he had been reeled back into the world of high school football. Then came the opportunity to take a coaching position in Water Valley and Mix “came home and hit the reset button,” in 2001. 

For Mix, the most rewarding part of coaching is the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of young people. Everyday he takes the time to promote the importance of education and hard work in order to be successful. He can also provide a unique perspective to athletes hoping to play at the next level, as he has lived the experience himself. 

“It takes a special breed of player to play college ball, and an even more special breed to play professionally,” he says, “if you are good enough, they (coaches/ scouts) will find you.” 

For Mix, trying to describe Water Valley to someone new usually consists of, “It’s 20 minutes from Ole Miss.” And for him, the best part is the crappie fishing, which he describes as the best in the area, but most importantly of all, for him, Water Valley is home and there is no place he would rather be. 

Now for the rapid-fire questions to close the interview with Mix

What was your first car? 

–  1989 Buick, I worked all summer to get an engine put in it to go to college. 

You are stranded on a desert island, what three things do you want to have with you? 

– My wife, a source of food and water, and something to start a fire.

Is a hotdog considered a sandwich? 

– Yes

If you could have one superpower, what would it be? 

– Flying would be cool.

It’s karaoke night, what is your go-to song to sing? 

– Love and Happiness  by Al Green.

Last meal, what do you want? Entrée, desert, and beverage? 

– Mozzarella sticks and a rack of ribs from my own grill, German chocolate cake, and a big glass of Diet Dr. Pepper.