A true throwback player: County Player of Year Olson threatened Chi-Hi's foes from all sides

Last modified: Thursday, November 27, 2008 9:05 AM CST

A true throwback player: County Player of Year Olson threatened Chi-Hi's foes from all sides

Mitch Olson can pass the football.

He can throw the ball.

He can defend the pass.

He can return punts and kicks.

Olson’s playmaking ability on every part of the football field helped to pave the way for the 2008 Chippewa County Football Player of the Year.

“I just went out and helped the team any way I could. Whether that was on offense or defense or special teams, I did everything I could to help improve the team,” he said. “I can honestly say it was a team effort and everybody put everything into it. Obviously, I don’t think any one of us wanted to leave the field because we loved being on the field so much.”

Although Olson didn’t put up gawdy numbers passing or running the football, all anyone had to do was talk to opposing Big Rivers Conference coaches about having to defending him, whether it was Menomonie coach Joe LaBuda or any of the others head coaches.

As Chippewa Falls coach Chuck Raykovich put it, he had some unmeasurable qualities that made him very good.

“He’s a leader. Football is not something he does in the fall, it’s a year-round thing. It’s the knowledge that we put him out there and know he’s going to be solid,” Raykovich said. “When you lose somebody like that, it’s hard to replace. It doesn’t matter — defense, quarterback, special teams — he’ll get the job done.”

Olson’s not only received honors for the county, but the Associated Press this week announced him as an honorable mention all-state defensive back.

His career with Chippewa Falls didn’t quite begin just when he walked into the doors of the high school as a freshman. His career started long before that.

When his dad, defensive coordinator Bart, joined the coaching staff, Mitch became a ballboy with the team.

“I just kind of like grew up around the game. I think in kindergarten I started out as a ballboy for Chi-Hi. I remember a lot of those guys and running around on the sidelines with them,” he said.

Olson began playing youth football as a fifth grader in Bloomer and then switched over to playing for Chippewa Falls.

He began to form lifelong friendships with his classmates and they bubbled forward as he looked back on his career with a highlight film at the team’s banquet earlier this month.

“I was watching the highlights and stuff and watching Mike Adams popping off runs. I remember him doing the same thing against North Star in eighth grade,” Olson said. “It’s like nothing has really changed. We’ve always been the same group of kids.”

Olson said it’s been hard moving on from football and realizing the finality of high school football as well. The senior will continue to wear the colors of Chippewa Falls — this winter on the basketball team and most likely on the baseball team in the spring — but he’s clearly a die-hard for football.

“I’ll definitely miss playing with these guys and being around these coaches. I think about just being in high school and I think about football,” Olson said. “It’s kind of hard to let that go. I’ve been thinking about that a lot. It’s going to be a lot different not being involved with Chi-Hi football.”

Olson’s playing days did not end with the first round playoff loss to Bay Port, however. Many schools have courted him to be a player for their team.

Minnesota State-Moorhead, the school that also signed the 2006 Player of the Year in Stanley-Boyd’s Kyle Thorpe, has offered a scholarship to Olson.

Other Division II schools Winona State and Concordia have shown interest as have former Division I-AA schools South Dakota, North Dakota and North Dakota State.

Two Division I programs, Air Force and Wyoming, also have contacted Olson.

Olson carries a 3.98 grade point average in his classes and his average along with his footballs skills drew interest from three Ivy League schools: Pennsylvania, Princeton and Yale.

“It’s been going good. It’s a little more of a stressful time,” he said. “I’m still hearing from a lot of schools.”

He feels grateful to his family for the support they’ve shown in all of the sports he’s participated in this year, but he especially thanks his sister, Ali.

“She’s been dragged along since 8-year-old baseball tournaments,” he said. “I feel kind of bad for her because she didn’t have the most fun there. I really do appreciate her coming along.”

In looking back at his career, Olson said he appreciates his second family — his teammates and coaches — as well and many memorable moments as well.

“I guess these last couple of years against Menomonie have been huge. It’s made life really good,” he said. “Growing up, watching us go back and forth and they got the better of us most of the time. To get the better of them and to go out on top has been really fun.”

And he appreciates the help he received from the players in the program when he first set foot on the varsity field as a sophomore.

“My sophomore year, I hadn’t played much (defensive back). I was back playing safety with Bryan Klitzke. I remember the playoff run and I had an opportunity to learn about the game and I learned so much from Bryan,” he said. “He played with so much fire and so much heart. I learned a lot from him in that respect.”

For someone like Raykovich, Olson is concluded many years around the football program.

“He probably knew as much about the program as a player as anybody because he had been around it so long,” he said. “It was kind of neat to see him as a little kid. He was a little kid when he first came around. It’s kind of shocking to me that he’s already a senior in high school already.”