Football County Player of the Year Mickey gets scholarship offer from Cal Poly

After a long wait, Arroyo Grande football star and 2015 Tribune County Player of the Year Bradley Mickey received his first scholarship offer on Tuesday.

Mickey made the announcement on Twitter on Thursday.

“Very excited to have received an offer from Cal Poly! #Mustangs,” Mickey tweeted Thursday evening.

“It was a big goal of mine,” Mickey said in a phone interview on Friday. “It feels good to get the monkey off my back and know that I am good enough and they have faith in me as a player.”

Mickey said Cal Poly head coach Tim Walsh, along with assistant coaches Jim Craft and Saga Tuitele, came to his home Tuesday to offer him a partial scholarship.

Mickey also received interest from San Diego State during his senior season, when he racked up 69 tackles, 20 touchdowns (13 rushing, 3 receiving, 3 interception returns and 1 passing) three forced fumbles and 1,900 all purpose yards — all while carrying a 3.92 GPA.

“It is well-deserved,” Arroyo Grande head coach Tom Goossen said. “He will be a great player. It will be very exciting to watch him play on Saturdays.”

Mickey will follow in the footsteps of Grant Alton and Kelly Shepard, two recent Arroyo Grande graduates who play linebacker and defensive end at Cal Poly, respectively.

“We will have the defense covered,” Goossen said.

The Cal Poly coaching staff was looking at Mickey starting last spring, Goossen said, and attended a couple of Arroyo Grande games this season.

“I don’t think originally they were going to sign a safety, but hopefully he changed their mind,” Goossen said.

In addition to being a defensive standout last season, Mickey excelled on the offensive side as a running back and receiver — but the Cal Poly coaching staff likely will want him to focus on the defensive side of the ball.

“If something were to happen along the way and I have to play offense, that wouldn’t be bad,” Mickey laughed.

The Tribune reached out to Cal Poly for comment, but college coaches aren’t able to talk about recruits until the official signing day Feb. 3., according to the school.

Mickey will take an official visit to tour the football facilities and meet players and coaches at the end of the month. In school, Mickey hopes to enroll in the Recreation, Parks, and Tourism Administration program and eventually land a job somewhere in the sports world.

“(The Cal Poly coaches) were excited and really want me to like the school,” Mickey said. “My parents were really happy. They know that I am still going to play football and know Cal Poly can help get me to where I want to go.”

This story was originally published January 8, 2016 at 4:05 PM with the headline "Football County Player of the Year Mickey gets scholarship offer from Cal Poly."