For UAB Run Game Coordinator and Running Backs Coach Danny Mitchell, football is a legacy rooted in family, mentorship, and the moments that shaped his passion for the game. One of those moments came when he was just 16 years old, standing on a practice field with Tom Brady.
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Mitchell recently opened up about the experience, recalling how he first met Brady through his grandfather, legendary quarterback coach Tom Martinez. Martinez, who mentored both Brady and Mitchell, “took me under his wing because I just loved coaching football,” Mitchell said.
It was his grandfather’s guidance that opened the door to a rare opportunity to train and observe alongside the greatest quarterback of all time.
“Beyond Tom Brady, obviously everyone sees that’s after he’s won three Super Bowls,” Mitchell explained. “He was actually my throwing partner with Tom Martinez. The reason why I know Coach Martinez is—he’s my grandfather. So I lost my grandfather in 2021 of November. When I look at that picture, I really don’t get to talk about the culmination… now I’m actually tearing up.”
Mitchell shared a particularly striking insight: that even as a teenager, Brady treated him with the same level of respect and intensity that he gave to head coach Bill Belichick.
“What I loved about Tom Brady, Tom Martinez, and my interaction… I’m a 16-year-old kid right there. He treated me the same exact way as he would treat Bill Belichick,” Mitchell said. “When I was standing there, watching Tom throw, I’ll remember that for the rest of my life.”
That humility and professionalism, Mitchell said, set the standard for how he approaches coaching and player relationships today. Brady’s example and his grandfather’s insistence on professionalism and preparation instilled in him a lifelong appreciation for doing things “the right way.”
Not long after that, Mitchell was invited to the Bay Area by Coach Martinez to catch passes for Brady’s then-backup, Matt Gutierrez of the New England Patriots.
“Coach Martinez flew me up when I was 18 years old. This is when I knew I wanted to start coaching,” Mitchell recalled. “Tom’s backup was a guy named Matt Gutierrez, and he had me fly up to the Bay Area and catch for Matt. He didn’t have to fly me up… but he wanted me there to help coach and build my confidence. That started with how Tom treated me.”
From leading the Vienna Vikings to a European League of Football championship to serving in the NFL’s Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Mitchell’s coaching résumé has spanned the globe. But at the heart of it all is that formative connection—with his grandfather, with Brady, and with the game itself.
As Mitchell reflected emotionally, it’s those roots that still drive him.
“Before he passed, my grandpa was in hospice,” Mitchell said quietly. “His last words to me before he said ‘I love you’ were, ‘I’ve always wanted to see your name on the ESPN ticker.’”
