Jeff Zimmerman (American football)

From Infogalactic: the planetary knowledge core
Jump to: navigation, search
Jeff Zimmerman
No. 76
Position: Guard, Tackle
Personal information
Date of birth: (1963-01-10) January 10, 1963 (age 61)
Place of birth: Enid, Oklahoma
Height: Lua error in Module:Convert at line 1851: attempt to index local 'en_value' (a nil value).
Weight: Lua error in Module:Convert at line 1851: attempt to index local 'en_value' (a nil value).
Career information
High school: Orlando (FL) Evans
College: Florida
NFL draft: 1987 / Round: 3 / Pick: 68
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Games played: 34
Games started: 2
Player stats at NFL.com
Player stats at PFR

Jeffrey Alan Zimmerman (born January 10, 1963) is an American former college and professional football player who was an offensive lineman in the National Football League (NFL) for four seasons during the late 1980s and early 1990s. He played college football for the University of Florida, and was twice recognized as an All-American. The Dallas Cowboys selected him in the third round of the 1987 NFL Draft.

Early years

Zimmerman was born in Enid, Oklahoma in 1963.[1] He attended Maynard Evans High School in Orlando, Florida,[2] where he was named high school All-American in 1982.

College career

He accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where he played for coach Charley Pell and coach Galen Hall's Florida Gators football teams from 1983 to 1986.[3] Zimmerman was one of the members of the Gators' outstanding offensive line of the mid-1980s known as the "Great Wall of Florida," which included Phil Bromley, Lomas Brown, Billy Hinson and Crawford Ker. Behind their blocking, the Gators' quarterback Kerwin Bell, fullback John L. Williams and halfback Neal Anderson led the Gators to identical 9–1–1 overall win-loss records and best-in-the-SEC records of 5–0–1 and 5–1 in 1984 and 1985, respectively. In 1985, he lost two weeks due to a right knee injury he suffered against Rutgers.[4]

Zimmerman was nicknamed "One Man Gang" by his teammates and was a three-year starter at right guard, until his senior season when he was named the starter at right tackle.[5] He was a first-team All-SEC selection and a first-team All-American in 1985 and 1986, in two different positions.[3]

Professional career

The Dallas Cowboys chose Zimmerman in the third round (sixty-eighth pick overall) of the 1987 NFL Draft,[6] as part of a change in the offensive line philosophy, when the team started to value size and strength over speed and athletic ability. Although he was initially projected as a first round draft choice, the weight problems he displayed as a senior and in the post-season dropped his value.[7]

As a rookie, his only recognition came from knocking Lawrence Taylor unconscious in a game against the New York Giants. In 1988, a dislocated shoulder he suffered in training camp limited his playing time to one game, until he was placed on the injured reserve list on September 23.[8] In 1990, he started the first 9 weeks of the year on the injured reserve list with a knee injury,[9] until being reactivated on November 7.[10]

During the 1991 off-season without any previous notice, he chose not to attend the Cowboys' conditioning program nor training camp, and was placed on the reserve/did not report list.[11] He announced his retirement from pro football at a later time, after the problems he experienced controlling his weight hampered his performance and cut his career short.[12]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com, Players, Jeff Zimmerman. Retrieved July 23, 2010.
  2. ↑ databaseFootball.com, Players, Jeff Zimmerman. Retrieved July 23, 2010.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 2011 Florida Gators Football Media Guide, University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 87–88, 92, 96, 186 (2011). Retrieved August 31, 2011.
  4. ↑ https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=888&dat=19850917&id=hGFRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=qmYDAAAAIBAJ&pg=3345,1182476
  5. ↑ https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1346&dat=19860812&id=kKpOAAAAIBAJ&sjid=lfsDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5330,5221063
  6. ↑ Pro Football Hall of Fame, Draft History, 1987 National Football League Draft. Retrieved July 23, 2010.
  7. ↑ https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1755&dat=19870429&id=YugbAAAAIBAJ&sjid=m3IEAAAAIBAJ&pg=3569,6055338
  8. ↑ https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=861&dat=19880924&id=gr1dAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Il4NAAAAIBAJ&pg=4620,5143687
  9. ↑ https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=861&dat=19900905&id=0JhSAAAAIBAJ&sjid=iDYNAAAAIBAJ&pg=5957,849906
  10. ↑ https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1320&dat=19901108&id=1cpWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=QOoDAAAAIBAJ&pg=4916,2960990
  11. ↑ http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1140595/3/index.htm%7D
  12. ↑ http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1140595/index.htm

Bibliography

  • Carlson, Norm, University of Florida Football Vault: The History of the Florida Gators, Whitman Publishing, LLC, Atlanta, Georgia (2007). ISBN 0-7948-2298-3.
  • Golenbock, Peter, Go Gators! An Oral History of Florida's Pursuit of Gridiron Glory, Legends Publishing, LLC, St. Petersburg, Florida (2002). ISBN 0-9650782-1-3.
  • Hairston, Jack, Tales from the Gator Swamp: A Collection of the Greatest Gator Stories Ever Told, Sports Publishing, LLC, Champaign, Illinois (2002). ISBN 1-58261-514-4.
  • McCarthy, Kevin M., Fightin' Gators: A History of University of Florida Football, Arcadia Publishing, Mount Pleasant, South Carolina (2000). ISBN 978-0-7385-0559-6.
  • Nash, Noel, ed., The Gainesville Sun Presents The Greatest Moments in Florida Gators Football, Sports Publishing, Inc., Champaign, Illinois (1998). ISBN 1-57167-196-X.

External links

Retrieved from "https://infogalactic.com/w/index.php?title=Jeff_Zimmerman_(American_football)&oldid=704930740"