Jeff Mitchell

Jeffrey Clay Mitchell (born January 29, 1974) is an American former professional football player who was a center in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons during the 1990s and 2000s. Mitchell played college football for the Florida Gators, where he was a member of a national championship team. Thereafter, he played professionally for the Baltimore Ravens and the Carolina Panthers of the NFL.

Early life

Mitchell was born in Dallas, Texas in 1974. He attended Countryside High School in Clearwater, Florida, and played defensive tackle for the Countryside Cougars high school football team. Mitchell set a school career record with seventeen quarterback sacks and earned an honorable mention from USA Today, and garnered All-State Class 5A first-team honors. 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. He is the older brother of former NFL defensive end Clint Mitchell.

College career

Mitchell accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where he played for coach Steve Spurrier's Florida Gators football team from 1992 to 1996. As a true freshman in 1992, the Gators coaching staff decided to redshirt him. During his four seasons as a Gator, Mitchell was a starter for three seasons and the Gators won four consecutive Southeastern Conference (SEC) titles in 1993 through 1996 and the Bowl Alliance national championship in 1996.

In one of a series of articles published in 2006, the sportswriters of The Gainesville Sun rated him as the No. 41 all-time greatest Gator from the first century of Florida football.

Professional career

The Baltimore Ravens selected Mitchell in the fifth round (134th pick overall) in the 1997 NFL draft. He played for the Ravens for four seasons from to . He saw no action as a rookie in 1997, but became a regular starter in 1998.

Mitchell was the veteran anchor on the Carolina offensive line for five years, from to .

Mitchell was a starter in 118 of 119 regular season NFL contests in which he appeared during his eight-year professional football career.

During the off-seasons, Mitchell served as the Vice President of Client Relations for Threadfin Business Solutions. He currently holds that position on a full-time basis.