Freddie Mitchell

In the NFC Divisional Playoff Game against the Green Bay Packers, with the Eagles facing a 4th and 26 situation, he caught a 28-yard pass from Donovan McNabb to help lead the team to a win in overtime.

Freddie Lee Mitchell II (born November 28, 1978) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver for four seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL).

Mitchell earned The Ledger second-team all-Lakeland area honors as a utility player following the 1995 season.

Mitchell visited the University of Florida, Florida State University, the University of Miami, and Michigan State University before he committed to the University of California, Los Angeles to play football for the Bruins.

He chose to play on the West Coast mainly because of the opportunities presented for his career after football.

He played in the Polk County East–West Senior All-Star Game in 1997 for the West squad.

He had a .388 batting average, three home runs, and eleven runs batted in (RBI).

Mitchell was drafted by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in the 47th round of the 1997 Major League Baseball Draft after graduating from Kathleen.

He had brief contract negotiations with the Devil Rays, but decided to attend college instead of signing with a professional team.

He was a guard in basketball, and scored 11 points in the 1997 Class 4A boys' high school basketball state championship for Kathleen as the Red Devils won their first ever title.

Mitchell, who had three steals in the game, was called for a technical foul after he went out-of-bounds and punched a cooler.

In football, he contributed as a wide receiver, kick returner, punt returner, holder for kicker Paul Edinger, and defensive back.

While attending the University of California, Los Angeles, Mitchell played for the UCLA Bruins football team from 1997 to 2000.

He sat out the 1997 season by taking a redshirt and subsequently lengthening his college football eligibility.

In his collegiate debut in 1998, he had four receptions for 108 yards, including a 79-yard touchdown from Cade McNown, as well as a 34-yard touchdown pass to Brian Poli-Dixon.

Mitchell broke his femur the following week against Houston and missed most of the season.

In his first game, a 49–31 win over Texas on September 12, 1998, Mitchell threw a 34-yard touchdown pass to Brian Poli-Dixon and had four catches for 108 yards and one touchdown pass (79 yards) from quarterback Cade McNown.

Limited by a knee cartilage injury throughout the 1999 season, he finished with 38 receptions for 533 yards.

He was chosen as a consensus All-American in 2000 while playing college football for the UCLA Bruins.

As a junior in 2000, Mitchell was a Fred Biletnikoff Award finalist and earned first-team All-Pacific-10 Conference (Pac-10) honors at the conclusion of the season.

In the 2000 Sun Bowl, he had nine catches for a Sun Bowl record of 180 yards.

Philadelphia selected him in the first round of the 2001 NFL Draft, and he spent four seasons as a member of the Eagles, culminating in an appearance in Super Bowl XXXIX following the 2004 NFL season.

A four-sport athlete at Kathleen High School, Mitchell committed to UCLA to play football for the Bruins.

He declared for the 2001 NFL Draft following the 2000 season and finished his college career with 77 catches for 1,494 yards and nine touchdowns.

Mitchell was drafted by the Eagles with the 25th selection in the first round of the 2001 NFL Draft.

He began the 2001 season as the fourth wide receiver, but surpassed Na Brown to become the team's slot receiver in week eight.

When the Eagles signed Antonio Freeman before the 2002 season, Mitchell became the fourth receiver again and caught twelve passes the entire year.

Mitchell became the slot receiver once again during the 2003 season, after Freeman left.

He finished the 2003 season with a career-high 35 catches for 498 yards and two touchdowns.

The presence of Terrell Owens in 2004 led to limited opportunities for Mitchell to catch passes and he showed his frustration on and off the field.

When Owens went down with an ankle injury towards the end of the season, Mitchell replaced him as the starter and had a two-touchdown performance in the Divisional Playoff Game against the Minnesota Vikings.

After the game, Mitchell said, "I just want to thank my hands for being so great."

In the week prior to Super Bowl XXXIX against the New England Patriots, he created controversy by offending members of the Patriots' secondary, including Rodney Harrison.

He caught one pass for 11 yards in the Super Bowl and was released by the Eagles on May 6, 2005.

The Kansas City Chiefs signed him shortly after, but he declined to have arthroscopic surgery on his injured knee and he was released before the start of the season.

After his NFL career ended, Mitchell bought a barbecue restaurant in Lakeland in 2008, but the venue was closed in September 2009.

Mitchell served time in prison for tax fraud from 2013 to 2016.

Mitchell grew up as the son of a pastor in Lakeland, Florida.

He attended Kathleen High School in Lakeland, where he lettered in cross country, baseball, football, and basketball.

In baseball, Mitchell was used as a pinch hitter and played outfielder.