Jeffrey Aloysius Van Note (born February 7, 1946) 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 center for the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...

of 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) during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. 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 ...

for the

Kentucky Wildcats The Kentucky Wildcats are the men's and women's intercollegiate athletic squads of the University of Kentucky (UK), a founding member of the Southeastern Conference. The Kentucky Wildcats is the student body of the University of Kentucky. 30, ...

. The Falcons selected him in the 11th round of the 1969 NFL draft.

College career

Van Note played at the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a Public University, public Land-grant University, land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical ...

, where he was a

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...

and

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

for the

Kentucky Wildcats football The Kentucky Wildcats football program represents the University of Kentucky in the sport of American football. The Kentucky Wildcats, Wildcats compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) ...

team from 1966 to 1968.

Professional career

Van Note was drafted as a

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...

by the

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 The Continental Football League (COFL) was a professional American football Minor league football (gridiron), minor league that operated in North America from 1965 through 1969. It was established following the collapse of the original United Fo ...

. Van Note soon moved to center by Falcons head coach

Norm Van Brocklin Norman Mack Van Brocklin (March 15, 1926 – May 2, 1983), nicknamed "the Dutchman", was an American professional football player, coach and executive. He played as a quarterback and punter in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons. ...

. 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 Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium, often referred to as Fulton County Stadium and originally named Atlanta Stadium, was a multi-purpose stadium located in Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia. The stadium was home of the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseb ...

on December 14, 1986, the Falcons honored Van Note and presented him a 57 Chevy. 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 Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

in 1999.

Broadcasting career

After retiring from professional football, Van Note served as

color commentator A color commentator or expert commentator is a sports commentator who assists the main (play-by-play) commentator, typically by filling in when play is not in progress. The person may also be referred to as a summariser (outside North America) ...

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 The Tennessee Titans are the professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. They are members of the South Division of the American Football Conference (AFC) in the National Football League (NFL). Previously known as the Ho ...

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 The Georgia Institute of Technology (commonly referred to as Georgia Tech, GT, and simply Tech or the Institute) is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Established in 1885, it has the lar ...

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.

Honors

* 4 time All-NFC (

UPI United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th ce ...

) - 1975, 1980–1982 * 6 time Pro-Bowler - 1974–1975, 1979–1982 * 2 time 2nd Team All-Pro ( AP) - 1979, 1982 * Induction into the American Football Association's Semi Pro Football Hall of Fame - 1984 * Participant in the collegiate Blue-Gray All-Star game * Falcons Ring of Honor - 2006 * Harris Poll Voter - 2011

References

External links

Georgia Sports Hall of FameAmerican Football Association
{{DEFAULTSORT:Van Note, Jeff 1946 births Living people American football centers Atlanta Falcons announcers Atlanta Falcons players Continental Football League players Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football announcers Kentucky Wildcats football announcers Kentucky Wildcats football players National Conference Pro Bowl players NFL announcers Sportspeople from South Orange, New Jersey Players of American football from Essex County, New Jersey Tennessee Titans announcers National Football League Players Association presidents Trade unionists from Kentucky