Brandon White plays a key role for both the Archbishop Mitty Monarchs' basketball and football teams. At 6-foot-3 and 190 pounds, White is a favorite receiving target of Cal-commit Kyle Boehm. White can run 4.69 seconds in the 40 yard dash, can bench press 220 pounds, and has a vertical of 30 inches. These physical attributes proves critical as he is a point guard who feeds his highly touted sophomore teammate, Aaron Gordon.
White started playing football as a freshman and has been a varsity starter for two years. Mitty finished this past season with 6-4-1 record that ended in a first round playoff loss to Palo Alto 13-10. White played wide receiver, defensive back, and kicker. He had 45 catches for 833 yards with 9 touchdowns while kicking 37 touchbacks in 50 kickoffs. His efforts earned him WCAL Wide Receiver of the Year, WCAL First Team All-League, and Mitty's Offensive Player of the Year.
White models his game after former Pitt Panther Larry Fitzgerald because he is a possession receiver with big target and big play capability. He considers his best skills to be his route running and pass catching.
Mitty Football Coach Matt Haniger says, "Brandon's strengths are his athleticism and intelligence. He had a very good season competing on the football field during his senior season. He knows how to adjust routes based on the type of coverage he would see and made some incredible catches. He worked hard on the practice field over the summer while managing his time between camps, practice, conditioning, and basketball. It paid off for him as he was named the WCAL Receiver of the year. I think he can play at the next level especially if he works on his top end speed. Brandon is one of the most naturally gifted athletes I have coached."
After the football season ends, White does not have much time to recuperate as he goes off to the basketball season. White has been playing since kindergarten and has been on varsity since his junior year. He started several games during his junior year and is a starter in his senior year. White compares his game to former Kentucky Wildcat Rajon Rondo because he considers his best skills to be his dribbling, passing, and his floor vision. White tries to use his court vision and quickness to get his teammates easy lay ups in fast breaks and transition.
Mitty Basketball Coach Tim Kennedy says, "Great vision - is able to make long outlets to our wings running the sidelines and hit them in stride and is able to get into the paint and set up our shooters with pinpoint passes. Brandon is also a great on-ball defender and led our team in steals last season. He is very focused and analytical. He is always looking for ways to break down an opponent's strengths and expose their weaknesses. Definitely has an NCAA build. He is strong and tall enough to play either football or basketball. He had an outstanding football season and I know he is getting a lot of interest. He has gotten stronger, faster and become a more complete basketball player this year. Brandon has been an exceptional academic performer and it is more impressive seeing that he also competes at such a high level in the basketball and football arenas."
Having this dual athleticism has brought attention to White from the college programs. Brown University (Joe Leslie), Cal Poly SLO (Bryan Cook), Oregon State (Joe Seumalo), Puget Sound (Alex Brenner), Sacramento State (Steven Roberson), San Jose State (Terry Malley), UC Davis (Michael Moroski), UCLA (Coach Gansz), San Diego (Joe Staab), Washington State (Steve Morton), and Williams College (Aaron E. Kelton) have been in touch with White for football. For basketball, White has been contacted by Puget Sound (Justin Lunt) and Williams College (Mike Maker). White has taken several unofficial visits on his own as San Diego is the only program to offer an official visit. As a west coast resident, he would like to stay on this side of the country. His current favorites are Cal Poly and Oregon State because of their campuses and programs.
White would like to play both wide receiver and guard in college. He wants the football program to have a good passing team that would allow him to contribute to the offense while the basketball team would be a high tempo, transitional team. White sports a 3.53 GPA with a 1720 SAT score. His favorite subject is Math as he would like to major in Civil Engineering.
B White, what his teammates call him, had a major laceration patella injury in his freshman year. He rehabbed and did everything necessary to get the strength and flexibility back in order to play sports again. White's tenaciousness, physical attributes, and athletic skills will make him an asset for any basketball or football program in college. Look for this dual Monarch's reign to continue in college in 2011.
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