Inside Mitch Van Vooren's 'Tremendous' Journey From D1 Track Star to Patriots

Mitch Van Vooren told his roommates. Most of his other teammates weren't aware, at least not to his knowledge.

But the senior had plans after Marquette. The 6-foot-5 track star, one who had been named an All-Big East outdoor hurdler, was transferring. He recalled being asked about what he wanted to do in the workforce after his time at Marquette. Van Vooren had other ideas.

Thanks to an extra year of eligibility granted during the COVID-19 pandemic, Van Vooren decided to pursue a dream that most people thought was crazy.

He wanted to play professional football.

"My family and friends, they always believed in me," the New England Patriots tight end told Patriots On SI last week at training camp. "I believed in my athletic ability, so it got me here to where I'm today."

Before his time in college, Van Vooren was a star for the Peshtigo High School football program in Wisconsin. But track, especially at a Big East program like Marquette, was hard to pass up. Bert Rogers, the director of track & field and cross country, remembers recruiting Van Vooren, a player who earned a scholarship after lettering four times.

Part 1: The Golden Eagle

As a freshman, Van Vooren finished first at the UW-Parkside Classic in the 55m hurdles (7.96 seconds), good for a personal best. In the three years that followed, Van Vooren blossomed into one of the best hurdlers in the entire Big East -- "Mitch really learned how to tactically race," Rogers told Patriots On SI.

"Over his time at Marquette, he did fine-tune his hurdling form, which certainly helped," Rogers said. "Mitch had a strong aerobic engine for a sprinter, which made him so good at the longer sprints like the 400 meters and the 400 hurdles."

Mitch Van Vooren was an All-Big East hurdler for Marquette before trading in his spikes for football cleats. | Contributed by Marquette University Athletics

By the time Van Vooren graduated from Marquette, he was a three-time Big East All-Academic and broke the university record in the 400m hurdles in the NCAA Tournament.

But he had an itch he couldn't scratch. He wanted to play in the NFL.

What?

A hurdler at a university where the football team folded in 1960 wants to go to the NFL?

Yeah right.

"I know there was routes to like get there," Van Vooren said. "If COVID never happened, I was gonna try out somehow and somehow get there. But with COVID, that extra year gave me the opportunity to play football. ... Everything happens for a reason, so it worked out a good way."

So Van Vooren, now in the transfer portal, looked for a new home. Sure, he had offers from Wisconsin and Miami to run track. But he wanted to stay close to home and play football. That's how he landed at St. Norbert, a Division III school in De Pere, Wisconsin -- a town with a population of about 25,000.

That doesn't scream NFL all that much. Still, Van Vooren knew what he wanted to do.

"That whole summer before I went to St. Norbert, I had a lot of good help and a lot of people around me (who) helped me make that transition," said Van Vooren, who admitted it took a lot of hard work behind the scenes.

Part 2: The Golden Knight

The first year at St. Norbert was a grind, according to head coach Dan McCarty. Van Vooren came in wanting to play receiver. His body type might have screamed more of a tight end, but the transfer knew where he wanted to line up. Plus, his track background could translate to the route running needed.

St. Norbert College wide receiver Mitch Van Vooren — Track star-turned-wide receiver Mitch Van Vooren catches a touchdown for St. Norbert College. | Contributed by Connor Rylatt / St. Norbert Football

"I think the whole first year was a learning curve, going from a track athlete, track mentality to a football player mentality," McCarty told Patriots On SI. "He'd been out of football for so long ... It was a lot of adjustment."

While he was at St. Norbert, Van Vooren didn't completely give up track. He ran for the Golden Knights' track program, setting a personal-best in the 400m outdoor hurdles (52.02 seconds). He would qualify for the NCAA Division III Outdoor National Championship in the category and was named a First Team All-American.

"It was a chance for him to be able to continue doing track, but also play football," McCarty said.

In his first season with St. Norbert, he caught 32 passes for 535 yards and three touchdowns. "Decent," as Van Vooren put in.

In 2024, his final year of college eligibility is when he came into his own. He caught 33 passes for 510 yards and 10 touchdowns. He was named to the All-NACC First Team and started to look like he belonged on the field. After the season, he had earned an invite to the College Gridiron Showcase in front of scouts.

He was getting onto the radars of a few NFL teams.

"He's just got that tremendous work ethic," McCarty said. "I can't say enough good things about just the character of Mitch and the type of person he is."

Van Vooren went undrafted, later signing a free agent contract with the Seattle Seahawks. His time in the Pacific Northwest was short lived, as he was released just nine days later. He'd land on his feet and join the Cleveland Browns -- only to be released after 20 days. Van Vooren remained a free agent since.

"This last year, I took a lot of effort just to make sure that I was in the correct shape," Van Vooren said, "so when I did get another shot, I'd have a chance to make that more of an opportunity than last time."

Part 3: The Golden Opportunity

The 25-year-old arrived in New England on July 22, thrown into the training camp fire without getting reps in OTAs or mandatory minicamp. Still, he's held his own and has made several plays with the third-string offense.

Jul 25, 2026; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots tight end Mitch Van Vooren (46) reaches for the ball at training camp at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Patriots offense is historically tough for tight ends to learn, especially for those who are still trying to play catch up with their peers who didn't take a four-year hiatus to run track. So other than making the 53-man roster, what does a successful summer look like for Van Vooren?

"You never know when's the last snap," Van Vooren said. "When I get in there, just showcase my ability and I know what I can do. So hopefully I can show the team and the general public what I believe myself."

"He obviously had the physical gift, but a lot of people do," Rogers said. "What separated Mitch was that attention to detail and the drive to become better."

Not many people expect to see St. Norbert next to an NFL player's name. Even less would expect to see Marquette. And yet, Van Vooren has cleared both those hurdles with ease.

"I like to say I'm keeping that football tradition alive," Van Vooren laughed. "It kind of gives me some some pride when people ask me where I went to my undergrad. It's like, 'Oh, I went to Marquette.' They're like, 'I didn't know they had a football team.'

"They don't," he said with a smile.

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