Stanton Earl Mitchell (August 17, 1944 — January 24, 2012) was an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

fullback who played in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). Mitchell played college football at

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

Early life and high school

Mitchell was born in

Wayne, Michigan Wayne is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 17,593 at the 2010 census. Wayne has a long history of automotive and transportation related manufacturing. Ford Motor Company currently has two plants in Wayn ...

and grew up in

Sparta, Tennessee Sparta is a city in and the county seat of White County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 5,001 in 2020.U.S. Census we ...

and attended White County High School.

College career

Mitchell was a three year starter at fullback for the Tennessee Volunteers. He led the team in rushing as a junior in 1964 with 325 yards. He finished his collegiate career with 1,266 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns.

Professional career

Mitchell was selected in the eighth round of the 1966 NFL Draft by the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

but opted to sign with the newly formed

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team p ...

of the American Football League, joining Tennessee teammate Frank Emanuel. Mitchell initially lived out of his car during training camp, expecting to be cut, and spent much of his rookie season on the taxi squad, playing in two games during the Dolphins' inaugural season. He made the team out of training camp the following year and rushed 83 times for 269 yards and three touchdowns and catching 18 passes for 133 yards and another touchdown. His four touchdowns tied for the team lead. Mitchell finished his professional career with 548 rushing yards and four touchdowns on 173 carries and 42 receptions for 533 yards and five touchdowns in 42 games played over five seasons.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mitchell, Stan 1944 births 2012 deaths Players of American football from Tennessee Tennessee Volunteers football players Miami Dolphins players American football fullbacks People from Sparta, Tennessee