NAME: Kevin Mitchell

YEAR: Junior

POSITION: Strong Safety

WHY JUICE? Given the nickname as a freshman when teammate Kyle Kleckner said he looked like Beetlejuice from Howard Stern.

As a kid playing football in his backyard, Kevin Mitchell frequently found himself out-matched against a much bigger opponent: his dad.

“He’d make me try, but I wasn’t strong enough,” Mitchell said. “Now I can take him out. I don’t know if he wants to go in the backyard and try to do that now, but back in the day he used to get me.”

Ten years later, Mitchell is putting that experience to work 12 Saturdays each fall as a strong safety at Illinois. Mitchell, a junior, is one of the team’s top defensive weapons, ranking second on the team in tackling and consistently taking out some of the Big Ten’s strongest offensive players.

“I call him the unpasteurized Juice,” said linebacker J Leman, Mitchell’s roommate and Illinois’ leading tackler. “He’s a calming force out there, and he just lays the wood. He’s probably the best hitter on the team. His eyes get big. He’s got big eyes to start with, but when his eyes really get big, you know he’s on to something,”

But there’s more to Mitchell than his season line of 53 tackles, 1 sack, 1 interception and 3 pass break-ups. He’s known for his dead-serious approach to football balanced by a laid-back personality off the field. One of the Ft. Wayne, Ind., native’s main strengths may be his ability to turn on the intensity whenever he steps onto the gridiron.

“He’s one of those guys who flips a switch,” Leman said. “Against Syracuse he was blowing up everybody he saw, but I’ve come to expect that from Juice. The first time we got here as freshman he was just laying wood on people and I was like, ‘Whoa, this kid can bring it.'”

Another asset is that he knows what it takes to tackle. In his fourth year at Illinois – he redshirted his freshman season – Mitchell has learned to layout an opponent’s running back with the ease his dad had when playing ball in the backyard.

Last season Mitchell led Illinois in tackling, averaging 7.1 per game. Each time Illinois’ defense has dominated this season, Mitchell has been a big part of the success. He has already recorded 7 tackles or more on five game days.

He had a career performance against Iowa, making his first career interception to kill an Iowa drive at the goal line and notched 10 tackles, including six solos.

“It’s all about field awareness, when they’re in your sight you’ve got to break down, let them make the first move, and wrap up and drag your feet,” Mitchell said. “It’s all about a feel, especially at this level. Now you should know how to tackle, but it’s not everybody’s forte. I believe I’ve been able to excel at it, and I need to keep doing that.”

Having been at Illinois since the days when defense was considered the team’s primary frailty also adds a dimension of realism to his approach to the game. Reporters know Mitchell will tell it like it is; teammates know he’ll deconstruct every strength and flaw he sees on the field.

He likes to repeat that Illinois has all the pieces, but is most successful when each falls into place.

“I feel as if I have to produce, but I should be able to since I’ve been here so long,” Mitchell said. “Things are so much slower out there, I can just play.”

NAME: Isiah Williams

YEAR: Freshman

POSITION: Quarterback

WHY JUICE? Weighing more than 13 pounds at birth, Juice Williams was so big his grandma called him a “Juicy baby” – and the name stuck.

Isiah Williams can’t jump.

He can launch a football 60 yards to a receiver with the ease of two frat brother playing catch. He can tuck the ball and wiggle through a half-dozen defenders as easily as a snake moves through sand.

But roommate and teammate Chris James says Illinois’ starting quarterback, who has been heralded as the key to the team’s much-anticipated turnaround, doesn’t have the hops to keep up in hoops.

“I met him playing basketball in the park district in sixth grade,” James says. “He’s alright, but he can’t jump at all.”

It’s a good thing vertical jump doesn’t figure into success at quarterback. In just five starts, Williams has broken school records and climbed the team’s rushing ranks. He’s never played so many games, thrown so many passes, or gotten so beaten up – but he says he’s loving every minute of it.

“He’s easy going, laid back,” James says. “A lot of Chicago Public school guys are just laid back, we just like to play football and have fun.”

Williams is the first freshman since Kurt Kittner to start at quarterback for Illinois. He is the team’s third-leading rusher, with 311 yards. He’s thrown seven touchdown passes for more than 30 yards each, including three over 65 yards.

Maybe that’s why the Block-I asks “Got Juice?” during each halftime. It could have something to do with the “Juice Williams for Heisman” group on Facebook. And it could contribute to the Beatle-style fan following he’s built over just two months at Illinois.

“It’s like Juice-mania, but living with him, I see that he’s a humble guy,” James says. “He never lets it get to him. He’s not a cocky or arrogant guy, so we really get along well. I know who he really is.”

But just because he can handle the pressure doesn’t mean freshman year is easy by any means. Williams admits to being “slightly” beat up right now, but insists it’s nothing he can’t handle.

“I’m a little tired,” Williams says.

But he leaves it at that. Williams admits more mental exhaustion than physical. After five starts he has just one win under his belt, but says he’s looking toward the future and trying to forget his current pain.

“Mentally I’m excited about learning different things. It’s exciting to see what my future’s going to be like,” Williams says. “Physically, this is the longest season I’ve played since I’ve been playing ball, so I’ve got to just push through, ask for help from my teammates, and hopefully they’ll be able to take care of me.”

The Chicago Vocational standout has more than just a powerful arm and promising future.

James calls him a neat-freak that likes to keep things in order.

He says Williams has no problem under pressure, but knows all eyes are on him.

“There’s a lot of things that go on that he just handles,” Williams says.

“He just goes about his day, he waves to everybody, says hi.”