Position: Center/Guard College: Florida State Weight 128 kg | Height: 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) Role American football player Place of birth: Tifton, Georgia Name Clay Shiver | |
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Date of birth: (1972-12-07) December 7, 1972 (age 43) | ||
Education Florida State University High school: Tifton (GA) Tift Co. | ||
Commitment- Former Dallas Cowboys & Florida State National Champ Clay Shiver on Commitment
Spencer Clay Shiver (born December 7, 1972) is a former football center in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys and Carolina Panthers. He played college football for Florida State University, where he was a member of a national championship team and earned All-American honors.
Contents
- Commitment Former Dallas Cowboys Florida State National Champ Clay Shiver on Commitment
- Early years
- College career
- Dallas Cowboys
- Denver Broncos
- Carolina Panthers
- Personal life
- References
Early years
Shiver was born in Tifton, Georgia. He attended Tift County High School, where he played high school football for the Blue Devils and received recognition as a high school All-American.
College career
Shiver accepted an athletic scholarship to attend Florida State University, where he played for coach Bobby Bowden's Florida State Seminoles football team from 1992 to 1995. As a sophomore in 1993, he was the snapper for quarterback Charlie Ward and a member of the Seminoles' Bowl Coalition national championship team that defeated the Nebraska Cornhuskers 18–16 in the Orange Bowl.
He was recognized as a first-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) selection in 1993, 1994 and 1995, and a first-team All-American in 1994 and 1995, garnering "consensus" status in 1995. Bobby Bowden called him "the greatest center I ever coached." In his junior and senior years, he was awarded the Jacobs Blocking Trophy presented annually to the best blocker in the ACC. Shiver was inducted into the Florida State Athletics Hall of Fame in 2001.
Dallas Cowboys
Shiver was selected in the third round (67th overall) of the 1996 NFL draft by the Dallas Cowboys. The next year, he replaced Ray Donaldson and started in all 16 games. He started the first nine games in 1998, before being limited with a turf toe injury and eventually being replaced in the starting lineup with 31-year-old rookie Mike Kiselak.
He struggled during his time with the Cowboys because he lacked size and strength, so the team chose to sign free agent Mark Stepnoski in 1999, instead of re-signing him.
Denver Broncos
In 1999, he signed as a free agent with the Denver Broncos, but was waived before the season started.
Carolina Panthers
On December, 14, 1999, he was signed by the Carolina Panthers, to fill the roster spot left open by the injured Nate Newton, but he did not appear in a regular season game. He was released on August 27, 2000.
Personal life
Shiver has been featured in many national publications and on CBS's 48 Hours special about character in college football.