Jeff Mitchell

Infobox NFLretired


|width=
caption=
position=Center
number=60
birthdate=birth date and age|1974|1|29
Clearwater, Florida
deathdate=
debutyear=1997
finalyear=2005
draftyear=1997
draftround=5
draftpick=134
college=Florida
teams=
* Baltimore Ravens (1997-2000)
* Carolina Panthers (2001-2005)
stat1label=Games played
stat1value=119
stat2label=Games started
stat2value=118
stat3label=Fumble recoveries
stat3value=2
nfl=MIT361739
highlights=
* Super Bowl champion (XXXV)
HOF=
CollegeHOF=

Jeffrey Clay Mitchell (born January 29 1974 in Clearwater, Florida) is a former American football center who most recently played for the Carolina Panthers in the NFL. He played college football at the University of Florida.

High school career

Mitchell set a school career record with 17 quarterback sacks at Countryside High School in Clearwater, Florida. He earned an honorable mention from "USA Today", garnered All-State Class 5A first-team honors, and was named the Pinellas County Athletic Conference Most Valuable Player as a seniorFact|date=January 2007. Mitchell was named the county player of the year by the "Tampa Tribune" and All-Suncoast Defensive Player of the Year by the "St. Petersburg Times".Fact|date=January 2007

College career

Jeff Mitchell started three seasons for the University of Florida, which won four consecutive Southeastern Conference titles and the 1996 national championship blocking for Heisman Trophy winner Danny Wuerffel. Mitchell earned academic honors for four consecutive seasons. As a senior in 1996, he started eight games at center for the Gators' offense that averaged 503.9 yards per game before suffering an ankle injury versus the University of Georgia that forced him to miss the remainder of the season. As a junior in 1995, he was an All-SEC first-team pick by "Football News". During that junior year, he started every game at center and was named the team's Comeback Player of the Year after missing spring practice following arthroscopic surgery In 1995 & 1996 Mitchell anchored the offensive line alongside his best friend Offensive Guard Donnie Young.

NFL career

Jeff Mitchell is a 10-year NFL veteran and has been the anchor on the Carolina offensive line for five years. He has been a starter in 102-of-103 career regular season NFL contests. Mitchell joined Jordan Gross as the only Panthers offensive linemen to start every game in 2004. He anchored the Panthers offensive line that allowed only 26 sacks in 2003, a team record for fewest sacks allowed in a season, and helped Panthers rush for a team-record 2,091 yards, including a team-individual mark of 1,444 yards by Stephen Davis. Mitchell earned a Super Bowl ring with the Baltimore Ravens in 2000, starting at center for the Ravens in their defeat of the New York Giants in Super Bowl XXXV.

External links

* [http://www.nfl.com/players/playerpage/3977 NFL Player Page]