THE FLATS – Georgia Tech athletics mourns the passing of Tech Sports Hall of Famer Wade Mitchell, who died on January 6. He was 89.
Mitchell, a 1957 Georgia Tech alumnus (B.S. textile management), helped lead Tech football to a 36-7-2 record, four bowl victories (1954 Sugar, 1955 Cotton, 1956 Sugar and 1957 Gator) and four wins over archrival Georgia in his four years as a quarterback, safety and kicker for the Yellow Jackets from 1953-56. He was a three-year starter at quarterback (1954-56), a two-time all-Southeastern Conference selection (1955-56) and served as a team captain for the Jackets as a senior in 1956.
In his final game as a Yellow Jacket, Mitchell was named MVP of the 1957 Gator Bowl after engineering three touchdown drives and also intercepting a pass to seal Tech’s 21-14 win over Pitt, which capped a 10-1 campaign that saw the Jackets finish with a No. 4 national ranking. Mitchell also scored the Jackets’ only touchdown in a 7-0 win over Pitt in the 1956 Sugar Bowl, a game notable for Mitchell joining teammates, coaches, students and administrators in voicing opposition to efforts to block Tech from playing in the game against Pitt, an integrated team.
He was selected in the 12th round of the 1957 National Football League Draft by the Washington Redskins, but instead chose to serve in the U.S. Navy from 1957-59. After his service to the nation, he attended Harvard Business School and had a successful 31-year banking career in Atlanta, retiring from Truist Bank as executive vice president in 1993.
Widely known for his contributions to the Atlanta community, Mitchell was active in many philanthropic boards, including the Georgia Tech Foundation, LifeLink Foundation, the United Way of Atlanta, the Atlanta chapter of American Red Cross, the U.S.O. Council of Georgia, Shepard Spinal Center and Big Brothers/Big Sisters, among many others. He also served on the Atlanta Board of Aldermen (now City Council) from 1969-73. In recognition of his professional and civic service, he was named Buckhead Boy of the Year in 1994.
His accomplishments on the gridiron led to him being inducted to the Georgia Tech Sports Hall of Fame in 1976, the Gator Bowl Hall of Fame in 1996 and the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in 2004. He was also a three-time academic all-SEC selection, a first-team academic all-American in 1955 and remains Tech football’s lone representative of the Academic All-America Hall of Fame, which inducted him in 1996.
He is also a member of the Georgia Tech Engineering Hall of Fame and, as an ROTC officer at Tech, received the Golden Sword Award as the Institute’s highest-ranking cadet.
Mitchell is preceded in death by his wife of 58 years, Mary Lu, and they are survived by a son, Wright, a daughter, Catherine, and five grandchildren.
The family will hold a private burial service. In lieu of flowers, they ask to please consider a donation to the Georgia Tech Foundation or LifeLink Foundation.
Full Steam Ahead
Full Steam Ahead is a $500 million fundraising initiative to achieve Georgia Tech athletics’ goal of competing for championships at the highest level in the next era of intercollegiate athletics. The initiative will fund transformative projects for Tech athletics, including renovations of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field (the historic home of Georgia Tech football), the Zelnak Basketball Center (the practice and training facility for Tech basketball) and O’Keefe Gymnasium (the venerable home of Yellow Jackets volleyball), as well as additional projects and initiatives to further advance Georgia Tech athletics through program wide-operational support. All members of the Georgia Tech community are invited to visit atfund.org/FullSteamAhead for full details and renderings of the renovation projects, as well as to learn about opportunities to contribute online.
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