Darrell Shropshire (born March 18, 1983) is an American former

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

player who was a

defensive lineman In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line, while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line. A numbe ...

. He was selected in the seventh round (241st overall) of the

2005 NFL Draft The 2005 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The NFL draft, draft was held April 23–24, 2005 NFL seaso ...

by the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...

. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at the University of South Carolina.

Early life

Shropshire attended Andrew Jackson High School, where he played defensive end, running back and tight end. He also played center on the basketball team.

College career

Shropshire attended Coffeyville Community College. He was named First-team

Junior College A junior college (sometimes referred to colloquially as a juco, JuCo or JC) is a post-secondary educational institution offering vocational training designed to prepare students for either skilled trades and technical occupations and workers in su ...

All-America and rated the #7 prospect in the ''SuperPrep'' JUCO Top 100. He was named the 2002 Defensive MVP of the Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference. He recorded 54 tackles and six sacks his freshman season and 67 tackles and six sacks during his sophomore season before transferring to South Carolina. While at Coffeyville Community College, he played for Jeff Leiker, who is a current Arizona Rattlers assistant head coach/

offensive coordinator An offensive coordinator is a member of the coaching staff of an American football or Canadian football team who is in charge of the team's offense. Generally, along with the defensive coordinator and the special teams coordinator, this coach re ...

. During his first season at South Carolina in

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...

, he started all 12 games at defensive tackle. He recorded 35 total tackles (17 solo), with four tackles for loss, four quarterback hurries, and four pass break ups. He had a season-high five-tackle performance against Arkansas. As a senior in

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...

, Shropshire made 28 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, two sacks, and a quarterback hurry. While at South Carolina, he majored in Sport and Entertainment Management.

Professional career

National Football League

Shropshire was selected by the

in the seventh round (241st overall) of the

. He played two seasons, with the Atlanta Falcons. As a rookie in 2005, he played in 10 games, recording 13 tackles (eight solo), two sacks, and two passes defended. Before being waived on September 1, 2007, he played in all four 2007 preseason games, registering four tackles and a half a sack. In 2006, Shropshire played in 13 games for the Falcons, starting one, and recorded eight tackles (six solo), one sack, and four passes defended.

Arena Football League

On December 14, 2007, Shropshire signed with the

Arizona Rattlers The Arizona Rattlers are a professional indoor American football team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They are currently members of the Indoor Football League (IFL). The Rattlers were founded in 1992 as an expansion team in the Arena Football League ...

of the Arena Football League.ArenaFan Online : Arizona Rattlers - Team Transactions
/ref> On March 27, he was placed on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...

. On April 24, he was activated from injured reserve and returned to the team. In

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

, he played in eight regular season games for the Rattlers. On August 11, 2008, he was placed on the exempted list by the Rattlers.

Notes

External links

Profile
at NFL.com
Profile at ArenaFan

ESPN.com profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shropshire, Darrell 1983 births American football defensive tackles Atlanta Falcons players Arizona Rattlers players Coffeyville Red Ravens football players Living people South Carolina Gamecocks football players People from Kershaw, South Carolina Players of American football from South Carolina