No. 57 | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Position: | Center | ||||||
Personal information | |||||||
Born: | South Orange, New Jersey, U.S. | February 7, 1946||||||
Height: | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||||||
Weight: | 247 lb (112 kg) | ||||||
Career information | |||||||
High school: | St. Joseph Prep (Bardstown, Kentucky) | ||||||
College: | Kentucky | ||||||
NFL draft: | 1969 / Round: 11 / Pick: 262 | ||||||
Career history | |||||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||||
Career NFL statistics | |||||||
| |||||||
Player stats at PFR |
Jeffrey Aloysius Van Note (born February 7, 1946 [1] ) is an American former professional football player who was a center for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL) during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. He played college football for the Kentucky Wildcats. The Falcons selected him in the 11th round of the 1969 NFL draft.
Van Note played at the University of Kentucky, where he was a running back and defensive end for the Kentucky Wildcats football team from 1966 to 1968.
Van Note was drafted as a linebacker by the Atlanta Falcons in the 11th round—the 269th overall pick of the 1969 NFL draft. During the 1969 season, he played minor league football with the Alabama (Huntsville) Hawks of the Continental Football League.
Van Note soon moved to center by Falcons head coach Norm Van Brocklin. Despite his modest draft status and lack of experience in the position, Van Note established himself as one of the finest centers in the NFL, making six Pro Bowls and helping the young Atlanta franchise to some of the greatest seasons in team history. His 18-year tenure with the Falcons is one of the 25 longest in NFL history and is the second longest while staying with the same team. He played in 246 games over this stretch, and his 225 games started as a Falcon is second in team history to Mike Kenn. Van Note missed a mere four games in his entire NFL career.
In his final home game at Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium on December 14, 1986, the Falcons honored Van Note and presented him a 57 Chevy. [2] He would also be voted by fans as the franchise's favorite player during the Falcons' 25th Anniversary season in 1991. Van Note would be inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in 1999.
After retiring from professional football, Van Note served as color commentator on the Atlanta Falcons and Kentucky Wildcats football broadcasts throughout the 1990s. Throughout this period, he would also frequently be heard on Atlanta airwaves as a sports-talk radio host.
Van Note also spent time alongside Joe McConnell as the color commentator for the Tennessee Oilers in 1997.
Van Note gave up his commentator positions with both teams following the 2003 season, but was called back into regular duty when Georgia Tech football analyst Kim King was unable to call games and later died in the fall of 2004.
Though no longer occupying the Falcons' play-by-play booth, he has continued to appear weekly on the Falcons' radio broadcasts, hosting a studio pre-game show and taking calls following the game.
Van Note called the University of Kentucky/Middle Tennessee State game with Tom Leach on UK radio in September 2008, filling in for regular commentator Jeff Piecoro.
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 were founded on June 30, 1965, and joined the NFL in 1966 as an expansion team, after the NFL offered then-owner Rankin Smith a franchise to keep him from joining the rival American Football League (AFL).
Francis Asbury Tarkenton, nicknamed "the Scrambler", is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons, primarily with the Minnesota Vikings. He played college football for the Georgia Bulldogs, where he was recognized as a twice first-team All-SEC, and was selected by the Vikings in the third round of the 1961 NFL draft. After retiring from football, he became a media personality and computer software executive.
Norman Mack Van Brocklin, nicknamed "the Dutchman", was an American football player, coach and executive. He played as a quarterback and punter in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons. He spent his first nine seasons with the Los Angeles Rams and his final three with the Philadelphia Eagles. Following his playing career, he was the inaugural head coach of the Minnesota Vikings from 1961 to 1966 and the second head coach of the Atlanta Falcons from 1968 to 1974.
Steven Jay Tasker is an American sports reporter and former football wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He spent the majority of his career with the Buffalo Bills but began his career with the Houston Oilers. He was a five-time first-team All-Pro and a seven-time Pro Bowl selection, primarily as a special teams player.
Steven Joseph Bartkowski is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for the Atlanta Falcons (1975–1985), Washington Redskins (1985) and the Los Angeles Rams (1986). He was a two-time Pro Bowl selection. Bartkowski played college football for the California Golden Bears, earning consensus All-American honors as a senior in 1974. He was selected by the Falcons with the first overall pick of the 1975 NFL draft.
Daniel Edward Reeves was an American professional football running back and coach in the National Football League (NFL). During his 38 years in the NFL, Reeves participated in nine Super Bowls, the third most for an individual. He was a head coach for 23 seasons, a position he held with the Denver Broncos from 1981 to 1992, the New York Giants from 1993 to 1996, and the Atlanta Falcons from 1997 to 2003. As a player, he spent his eight-season career with the Dallas Cowboys, who signed him as an undrafted free agent in 1965.
Anthony Cris Collinsworth is an American former football player and sports broadcaster. Collinsworth was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) for eight seasons (1981–1988), all with the Cincinnati Bengals. He played college football at the University of Florida, where he was recognized as an All-American. He is a television sportscaster for NBC, Showtime, and the NFL Network, and winner of 17 Sports Emmy Awards. He is also the majority owner of Pro Football Focus.
Thomas Henry Nobis Jr., nicknamed "Mr. Falcon", was an American football linebacker who played for 11 seasons with the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Texas Longhorns, where he played as a linebacker and guard, and won the Maxwell Award in 1965. He was the first overall selection in the 1966 NFL draft.
Edward Joseph Podolak is a former professional American football player, a running back for nine seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs of the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL).
Leeman Bennett is a former American football coach who served at both the collegiate and professional levels, but is best remembered as head coach of the National Football League (NFL)'s Atlanta Falcons and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
David Mark Archer is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback for six seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Iowa State Cyclones. Undrafted in the 1984 NFL draft, he played in the NFL from 1984 to 1989 for the Atlanta Falcons, Washington Redskins, San Diego Chargers, and Philadelphia Eagles.
Michael Robert Pritchard is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at the University of Colorado. He played in the NFL for the Atlanta Falcons, Denver Broncos, Seattle Seahawks over a nine-year career.
Michael Lee Kenn is an American former professional football player who spent his entire 17-year career as an offensive tackle for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL) from 1978 to 1994. He played college football for the Michigan Wolverines and was selected by the Falcons in the first round of the 1978 NFL Draft with the 13th overall pick. Standing 6'7" and 277 lb, Kenn started all 251 NFL games in which he played. He holds the Falcons' franchise record for games started and games played. He was selected as a first-team All-Pro player in 1980, 1983 and 1991 and was invited to play in the Pro Bowl five consecutive years from 1980 to 1984.
Jacob Francis Tamme is a former American football tight end. He played college football at Kentucky and was selected by the Indianapolis Colts in the fourth round of the 2008 NFL Draft.
Ellis Bernard Johnson is an American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL) for ten seasons during the 1990s and 2000s. Johnson played college football for the University of Florida, and was recognized as the National Defensive Player of the Year. He was selected in the first round of the 1995 NFL draft, and played professionally for the Indianapolis Colts, Atlanta Falcons and Denver Broncos of the NFL.
William Lamar Lothridge was an American football punter and safety who played in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys, the Los Angeles Rams, the Atlanta Falcons and the Miami Dolphins. He played college football at Georgia Tech.
Walter Robert Yowarsky was an American football defensive end, offensive lineman, coach, and scout in the National Football League (NFL) for 50 years.
Lewis Glen Carpenter was an American football player and coach. He played college football for the University of Arkansas and professionally for ten seasons in the National Football League (NFL) as a halfback and fullback with the Detroit Lions, Cleveland Browns, and Green Bay Packers. He played on three NFL Championship teams, with Detroit in 1953 and with Green Bay in 1961 and 1962. After his playing career ended, Carpenter spent 31 years as an assistant coach in the NFL with the Minnesota Vikings (1964–1966), Atlanta Falcons (1967–1968), Washington Redskins (1969), St. Louis Cardinals (1970–1972), Houston Oilers (1970–1974), Green Bay Packers (1975–1985), Detroit Lions (1987–1988), and Philadelphia Eagles (1990–1994). Carpenter also coached the Frankfurt Galaxy of the World League of American Football in 1996 and at Southwest Texas State University. He concluded his 47 years of playing and coaching football at the end of the 1996 season. Scientific tests on his brain diagnosed post-mortem that he had an advanced case of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).
Corey Peters is a former American football nose tackle. He played college football at Kentucky. He was selected by the Atlanta Falcons in the third round of the 2010 NFL Draft, and spent time with the Arizona Cardinals and Jacksonville Jaguars.
Josh Ali is an American football wide receiver for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Kentucky and was signed by the Falcons as an undrafted free agent in 2022.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)