Gunnar Brekke walked toward the sidelines, shaking his head in disbelief.
“Who is this kid? He literally catches everything,” Brekke, MSU’s junior stud running back, said as he shook his head, an incredulous smile on his face.
“How can this kid possibly be this good?” senior tight end Beau Sandland asked during a practice last week the emerging human highlight reel stopped on a dime, turned around while jumping in the air, tipped the ball with his left hand in front of sophomore cornerback Bryce Alley to his right hand behind Alley, making the catch as the pass-catcher fell back-first onto the turf.
Herbert
“He is literally the most sure-handed receiver I’ve ever played with,” Sandland exclaimed on Monday when Herbert made a leaping, falling, toe-dragging catch in the North end zone during the morning session of MSU’s first two-practice day.
“I’m not even tall enough to show you just how big that dude’s catch radius is,” said 5-foot-8 freshman running back Logan Jones to fellow former Kalispell Glacier tailback Noah James after another high-pointed ball that provoked quite the reaction from the sidelines.
As Montana State nears the stretch run of its two-week fall camp, Mitchell Herbert has turned himself into a daily highlight. The 6-foot-4, 205-pound sophomore has made a catch you could argue was the play of the day each and every day of camp this far. His ability to adjust to the ball in the air and to catch the pigskin at its highest point has turned his teammates’ heads since camp began.
“That’s something that’s just God given,” MSU second-year wide receivers coach Cody Kempt said. “His ability to play the ball in the air and naturally twist and turn his body and control it is something that God has blessed him with. He has an unbelievable knack for tracking the football and being able to go grab the rebound and catch it eye level or higher. Some guys are just naturally gifted. He has all the tools. We have just been able to sharpen his sword.”
A season ago, Herbert had 28 catches and snared a team-best four touchdowns. The true freshman out of Sheldon High in Eugene, Oregon broke into the starting lineup because of injury more than readiness but proved he could compete right away. He caught a game-winning touchdown in a 59-56 victory at Sacramento State. He came up with clutch grabs against Idaho State and in the playoffs against South Dakota State.
Herbert
“He has some of the best hands of any team I’ve played on in college,” said MSU senior corner Bryson Keeton, who transferred from Nevada before last season. “He has strong hands and he knows how to use his body.”
Keeton is 6-foot-2 and 195 pounds. He has long arms, a good reach and above-average ball skills. He’s going into his third season as a Division I starter. But he said Herbert is still a daily challenge to cover.
“Mitch makes you stay on your toes and he makes you finish your play,” Keeton said. “Really with Mitch, he can make plays when a ball is an inch off the ground, so you have to make sure you finish the play. First three seconds, you are all over him and the last second, he’ll tip it, fall back and he has really good hand-eye coordination and he’ll catch that thing. He’s ridiculous. “
Herbert’s breakout freshman season was followed by a trying off-season. In the spring, Herbert had to sit on the sidelines for the first time. As a kid, he suffered from a joint disorder known as osteochondritis dissecans (OCD or OD). The disorder causes cracks to form in the cartilage and the underlying bone due to blood deprivation. Herbert had multiple surgeries on his elbow (the afflicted area) as a youth. In the off-season, he had another surgery, a procedure that forced him to sit out all 15 spring practices.
“It was really tough to sit on the sideline and watch spring practice and watch all the guys get a step up by being out there,” Herbert said. “I took a different outlook on practice in the spring and it helped me learn the offense a little better. I was able to watch all the other receivers and take little things each of them do well and try to apply it to my own game.”
Although Herbert was productive as a true freshman, he said his head was spinning for much of the season as he tried to master Tim Cramsey’s up-tempo offense. Now that he’s entering his sophomore year, his calmness has returned.
“I feel 100 times more confident than last year,” Herbert said. “Last year, I was a step slow because I had to think. I had to think through all my routes and all my blocking assignments. Now I’m able to go out and play my game.”
Herbert has put on more than 10 pounds since signing with MSU. He’s also improved his speed over the last year. He runs in the low 4.6s, already faster than Tanner Bleskin, a 6-foot-4 pass catcher who set MSU’s receptions and receiving yards records for a career completed in 2012. And he spent the entire summer working out with junior quarterback Dakota Prukop.
Herbert
“All summer, me and Dakota came out here and he threw me verticals, he threw me back shoulders, he threw me all of that,” Herbert said. “I caught thousands of balls with Dakota over the summer. I think that helped so much.”
Last season, Montana State scored 43 of its 64 offensive touchdowns on the ground. None of Brekke, Tanner Roderick, Jayshawn Gates, Justin Paige, and Brian Flotkoetter’s combined 13 touchdowns were for less than 20 yards. In fact, Herbert caught three of Montana State’s five touchdowns of 10 yards or less. His performance in camp and his ever-increasing ability to go up and get the ball should help him continue to catch his teammates’ attention and praise.
“He’s been ballin’ out man,” Brown said. “If we are inside the 20, just throw it up to him. He’ll come down with it. He’s the most sure-handed guy out here.”
Photos by Brooks Nuanez. All Rights Reserved.
