Mullis signs basketball grant with Charlotte
By Steve Hanf, Staff Sports Writer, High Point Enterprise
11/12/2004
Charlotte’s basketball coaches liked Mitch Mullis when he was a tall, skinny sophomore at Forsyth Country Day.
They still liked him as a tall, more muscular senior at East Davidson High School. And even when Mullis had to spend a year getting his course credits in order at Laurinburg (N.C.) Prep, the 49ers told Mullis there would be a place for him.
“Charlotte started recruiting me back when I was a sophomore, letter after letter,” said Mullis, who officially signed on the dotted line with the 49ers on Thursday. "I visited early in my junior year, fell in love with the place, I loved the coaches. But when I had to transfer back to East Davidson from Forsyth Country Day, I had discrepancies with how my credits transferred from a private school to a public.
“They (Charlotte) said if I graduated next year, the year after that or two years down the road, they’d stick by me,” Mullis added. “Anywhere they’re going to do that, that’s the right fit for me.”
Mullis’ roundabout path to playing basketball at a high-level Division I school probably makes him even more ready for the challenges of competing in Conference-USA and handling the academic load.
Looming 6-foot-6 as a freshman at East Davidson, he had the Golden Eagles’ basketball coaches drooling before deciding to transfer to Forsyth Country Day. When Mullis returned to Thomasville for his senior year, East coach Matt Ridge was happy to get Mullis back in the lineup.
“When he was a freshman here, he was 6-foot-6. When he was a senior here, he was 6-foot-6 and 225 pounds,” Ridge said. “He had put on a lot of muscle by working in the weight room, developed some fundamentals. He’s got an array of post moves that is just amazing.”
Mullis averaged 21.8 points and 11 rebounds per game for East last season, more than making amends for his departure. East won the Davidson County Christmas tournament for the first time ever, and its 10-6 finish in the Central Carolina 2A Conference was its best in years.
The season capped Mullis’ career in style, but more work remained. Because of the missing credits, he was forced to attend prep school for a year before joining the 49ers. But even that’s not all bad - Laurinburg is considered as one of the top teams in the nation, and Mullis’ entire day revolves around classes and the court.
“Life’s taken me down a lot of roads playing basketball,” said Mullis. “God has blessed me.”
By playing in Charlotte, Mullis will be able to give back to his mother, Debra, and Godparents Rodney and Charity Skipper, without whom he says he “never would have made it.” The offers from Clemson and Tennessee were nice, but not close enough to home to sway Mullis.
“That’s another one of the biggest reasons I picked Charlotte,” he said. “My mom is a single parent and it’s hard for me to be away from her. I love home.”