Cornelius Griffin (; born December 3, 1976) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player who was a

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that typically lines up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the Guard (American football), offensive guards; however, he may also line up opposite one of the offensive Tackle (gridir ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He was selected by the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...

in the second round of the

2000 NFL draft The 2000 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur U.S. college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 15– 16, 2000, at the Theat ...

. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

Pearl River Community College Pearl River Community College is a public community college in Poplarville, Mississippi. It was founded as Pearl River County Agricultural High School in 1909 and became the first junior college in Mississippi in 1921. Residents of Hancock, ...

and

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

. Griffin also played for 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 of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East ...

Early life and college career

Griffin was born in

Troy, Alabama Troy is a city in and the county seat of Pike County, Alabama, United States. It was formally incorporated on February 4, 1843. Between 1763 and 1783, the area where Troy sits was part of the colony of British West Florida.The Economy of Bri ...

. His father Willie Griffin was a pastor of the Lily White Pentecostal Church in

Brundidge, Alabama Brundidge is the second-largest city in Pike County, Alabama, Pike County, Alabama, United States. The population was 2,076 at the 2010 census, down from 2,341 in 2000. The city was once a major producer of peanut butter. Brundidge holds a Pe ...

, and Cornelius was one of Willie and Martha Griffin's seven children. Willie died in a car accident in 1998. Griffin graduated from Pike County High School in 1995 in Brundidge, Alabama. He first played college football as a defensive tackle for

in Mississippi. Although he committed to Auburn, Griffin decided to sign with the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, the Capstone, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of ...

after Auburn coaches wanted him to become a tight end. In the

Alabama Crimson Tide The Alabama Crimson Tide refers to the college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic varsity teams that represent the University of Alabama, located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Tuscaloosa. The Crimson Tide teams compete in the Na ...

, he started 23 of 25 games in its team (including bowls). As a senior in 1999, he was part of the Super Sleeper Team and

All-Southeastern Conference The All-SEC football team is an annual Southeastern Conference (SEC) honor bestowed on the best players in the conference following every college football season. Seasons

Following is a list of all-conference teams in the history of the SEC: ...

first-team.

Professional career

2000 NFL Draft

Griffin was selected in the second round of the

by the

. "His workouts were unbelievable. We saw him as a certain first-rounder", said Giants General Manager

Ernie Accorsi Ernest William Accorsi Jr. (born October 29, 1941) is an American former professional football executive. He served as the general manager of three teams in the National Football League (NFL): the Baltimore Colts, Cleveland Browns, and New York ...

New York Giants

Griffin played for four

seasons A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's axial tilt, tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperat ...

with the Giants. He was a starter in Super Bowl 35 and recorded 1.5 sacks in the game.

Washington Redskins

Griffin was signed by the Giants'

NFC East The National Football Conference – Eastern Division or NFC East is one of the four Division (sport), divisions of the National Football Conference (NFC) in the National Football League (NFL). It has four members: the Dallas Cowboys, New Yo ...

-rival

as an

unrestricted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

on March 3, 2004, during the 2004

offseason In an organized sports league, a typical season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session: for example, in Major League Baseball the season lasts approximately from the last week of March to the last week of S ...

. Griffin had his best season in 2004, recording 96

tackles Tackle may refer to: * In football: ** Tackle (football move), a play in various forms of football ** Tackle (gridiron football position) A tackle is a playing position in American football. Historically, in the one-platoon system prevalent ...

(66 solo) and six sacks. He compiled 29 sacks with 461 tackles (340 solo) as a defensive tackle during his career. He was released on March 4, 2010.

After the NFL

Griffin purchased a share of Flowers Insurance Company in Troy, Alabama. The name has now been changed to Griffin-Wilkes Insurance. Griffin also coaches has coached at Pike Liberal Arts High School in Troy, Alabama. Although he currently coaches for the Pike County High School Bulldogs in Brundidge, Alabama which is also his hometown and hometown high school.

NFL statistics

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Griffin, Cornelius 1976 births Living people People from Troy, Alabama Alabama Crimson Tide football players American football defensive tackles New York Giants players Pearl River Wildcats football players Players of American football from Alabama Washington Redskins players 21st-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century American sportsmen