Jeff Mitchell

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For other persons named Jeff Mitchell, see Jeff Mitchell (disambiguation).

Jeffrey Clay Mitchell (born January 29, 1974) is an American football center who most recently played for the Carolina Panthers of the NFL. He is currently a free agent. He attended the University of Florida.

[edit] High school career

Mitchell set a school career record with 17 quarterback sacks at Countryside High School in Clearwater, Florida. He earned 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 senior. 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.

[edit] College career

Jeff Mitchell started three seasons for the University of Florida, which won four consecutive Southeastern Conference titles and a national championship. 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.

[edit] NFL career

Jeff Mitchell is a 9-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.