Darren Mickell
Encyclopedia
Darren Mickell is a former American college and professional football
player who was a defensive end
in the National Football League
(NFL) for ten seasons during the 1990s and early 2000s. Mickell played college football
for the University of Florida
, and thereafter, he played professionally for the Kansas City Chiefs
, the New Orleans Saints
, the San Diego Chargers
and the Oakland Raiders
of the NFL.
in 1970. He attended Miami Senior High School, and played high school football
for the Miami Stingaree
s.
to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida
, where he played for coach Steve Spurrier
's Florida Gators football
teams in 1990 and 1991. Mickell was a highly regarded recruit who was signed by the Gators' previous head coach, Galen Hall
, but he did not qualify academically and was ineligible to play under the NCAA's Proposition 48 legislation during his freshman
season in 1989. Spurrier subsequently benched him for the first five games of the 1991 season for his failure to attend classes as required. After his return to the playing field, Mickell was one of the defensive heroes in the Gators' 14–9 upset of the Florida State Seminoles
in November 1991—widely regarded as one of the closest and hardest-fought games in the Florida-Florida State series. Mickell lettered in 1990 and 1991, and left school a year early, after being suspended for the 1992 season for undisclosed violations of team rules.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
player who was a defensive end
Defensive end
Defensive end is the name of a defensive position in the sport of American and Canadian football.This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations have substantially changed how the position is played over the years...
in the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
(NFL) for ten seasons during the 1990s and early 2000s. Mickell played college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
for the University of Florida
University of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
, and thereafter, he played professionally for the Kansas City Chiefs
Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. They are a member of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Originally named the Dallas Texans, the club was founded by Lamar Hunt in 1960 as a...
, the New Orleans Saints
New Orleans Saints
The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans, Louisiana. They are members of the South Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League ....
, the San Diego Chargers
San Diego Chargers
The San Diego Chargers are a professional American football team based in San Diego, California. they were members of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
and the Oakland Raiders
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
of the NFL.
Early years
Mickell was born in Miami, FloridaMiami, Florida
Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...
in 1970. He attended Miami Senior High School, and played high school football
High school football
High school football, in North America, refers to the game of football as it is played in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both of these nations....
for the Miami Stingaree
Stingray
The stingrays are a group of rays, which are cartilaginous fishes related to sharks. They are classified in the suborder Myliobatoidei of the order Myliobatiformes, and consist of eight families: Hexatrygonidae , Plesiobatidae , Urolophidae , Urotrygonidae , Dasyatidae , Potamotrygonidae The...
s.
College career
Mickell received an athletic scholarshipAthletic scholarship
An athletic scholarship is a form of scholarship to attend a college or university awarded to an individual based predominantly on his or her ability to play in a sport...
to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida
Gainesville, Florida
Gainesville is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Alachua County, Florida, United States as well as the principal city of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area . The preliminary 2010 Census population count for Gainesville is 124,354. Gainesville is home to the sixth...
, where he played for coach Steve Spurrier
Steve Spurrier
Stephen Orr Spurrier is an American college football coach and player. Spurrier is the current head coach of the University of South Carolina's Gamecocks football team. He is also a former professional player and coach...
's Florida Gators football
Florida Gators football
The Florida Gators football team represents the University of Florida in the sport of American football. The Florida Gators compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletics Association and the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference...
teams in 1990 and 1991. Mickell was a highly regarded recruit who was signed by the Gators' previous head coach, Galen Hall
Galen Hall
Galen Samuel Hall is an American college and professional football coach and former player. He is a native of Pennsylvania, and an alumnus of Penn State University, where he played college football...
, but he did not qualify academically and was ineligible to play under the NCAA's Proposition 48 legislation during his freshman
Freshman
A freshman or fresher is a first-year student in secondary school, high school, or college. The term first year can also be used as a noun, to describe the students themselves A freshman (US) or fresher (UK, India) (or sometimes fish, freshie, fresher; slang plural frosh or freshmeat) is a...
season in 1989. Spurrier subsequently benched him for the first five games of the 1991 season for his failure to attend classes as required. After his return to the playing field, Mickell was one of the defensive heroes in the Gators' 14–9 upset of the Florida State Seminoles
1991 Florida State Seminoles football team
The 1991 Florida State Seminoles football team finished the 1991 college football season ranked #4 in both polls. They started the season ranked #1, but were dropped in the rankings after Wide Right I. The Seminoles offense scored 449 points while the defense allowed 188 points...
in November 1991—widely regarded as one of the closest and hardest-fought games in the Florida-Florida State series. Mickell lettered in 1990 and 1991, and left school a year early, after being suspended for the 1992 season for undisclosed violations of team rules.
Professional career
The Kansas City Chiefs selected Mickell in the second round of the 1992 NFL Supplemental Draft, and he played for the Chiefs for four seasons from to . Mickell was traded to the New Orleans Saints after the 1995 season, and was a consistent starter for the Saints from to . He signed with the San Diego Chargers a one-year deal as a free agent in , and the Oakland Raiders in . In his eight NFL seasons, Mickell played in eighty-nine regular season games, started sixty-one of them, and recorded 178 tackles and eleven forced fumbles.Life after football
Mickell is the father of four children: eldest son Darren C. Mickell, Delesha Mickell, Dereon Mickell and Anyae Mickell.See also
- Florida GatorsFlorida GatorsThe Florida Gators are the intercollegiate sports teams that represent the University of Florida located in Gainesville, Florida. The "Lady Gators" is an alternative nickname sometimes used by the Gators women's teams...
- Florida Gators football, 1990–1999
- List of Florida Gators football players
- List of Kansas City Chiefs players
- List of New Orleans Saints players