Rashean Jamil Mathis is an American football

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...

 cornerback

Cornerback

A cornerback is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in American and Canadian football. Cornerbacks cover receivers, to defend against pass offenses and make tackles. Other members of the defensive backfield include the safeties and occasionally linebackers. The cornerback position...

 currently playing for the Jacksonville Jaguars

Jacksonville Jaguars

The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida, U.S. They are currently members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

 of the NFL

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...

.

High school

Mathis attended Englewood High School

Englewood High School (Jacksonville, Florida)

Englewood High School is a public high school located on Jacksonville, Florida's southside.Rich in tradition and pride, Englewood High School was constructed in 1956 and exemplifies the concept of a "neighborhood school." Located on on the Southside of Jacksonville, Florida, this school is one of...

 in Jacksonville at the same time as Brett Myers

Brett Myers

Brett Allen Myers is a right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who is currently playing for the Houston Astros.-High school career:...

 of the Houston Astros

Houston Astros

The Houston Astros are a Major League Baseball team located in Houston, Texas. They are a member of the National League Central division. The Astros are expected to join the American League West division in 2013. Since , they have played their home games at Minute Maid Park, known as Enron Field...

, and was a student and a letterman in football. In football, he was a second team All-State, All-Conference, and an All-City honoree. Also, claims being recruited out of high school for baseball was highlight of his athletic career. Central Florida Community College and Indian River Community Colleges offered him scholarships to play center field.

College

Mathis 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...

 at Bethune-Cookman University. He was unable to receive any scholarships from larger schools because he broke his leg during high school.

He currently holds the record for the most interceptions in a single season and in a career in collegiate football history.(2011)
In 2002, he won the Buck Buchanan Award

Buck Buchanan Award

The Buck Buchanan Award is awarded annually to the most outstanding defensive player in the Division I Football Championship Subdivision of college football, and was first given in 1995 after the Walter Payton Award was designated solely for offensive players.The trophy was named in honor of the...

 for Division 1-AA (now FCS) defensive player of the year.

NFL

Mathis had 81 tackles as a rookie. He played both safety and cornerback his rookie year. He converted to cornerback full-time in 2004. Mathis had 2 interceptions in his rookie year and another 10 interceptions combined in the two years following. He had his best year in 2006, collecting 8 interceptions (tied for third in the league) and being voted to the Pro Bowl

Pro Bowl

In professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...

 where he started alongside Champ Bailey

Champ Bailey

Roland "Champ" Bailey is an American football cornerback for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League. Bailey was drafted in the 1st round of the 1999 NFL Draft by the Washington Redskins. He played college football at the University of Georgia.Bailey is 8th among Broncos in all-time...

. He and John Henderson were the only Jaguars on the team.

Mathis had his most significant game as a professional on January 5, 2008 in an AFC Wild Card playoff game against Pittsburgh. He had 2 interceptions, returning one for a touchdown.

On December 1, 2008, Mathis sustained a knee injury against the Houston Texans and was put on the injured reserve list ending his season.

On November 16, 2009, Mathis injured his groin while breaking up a pass in a win over the New York Jets. He would only play in one other game during the 2009 season, missing the rest because of the lingering injury.

On November 13, 2011, Mathis tore his ACL against the Indianapolis Colts, ending his season.