Mike Peterson

Lore & Background

Peterson was born in Gainesville, Florida in 1976. He attended Santa Fe High School in Alachua, Florida. He played for the Florida Gators from 1995 to 1998, starting twenty-four of forty-two games, with 249 tackles, three forced fumbles, thirteen tackles for a loss, and 8.5 sacks. He was a senior team captain in 1998, first-team All-SEC and first-team All-American, and was selected as the Gators' most valuable player by his teammates. He was inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame in 2011. He is the older brother of former Chicago Bears running back Adrian Peterson and cousin of former NFL wide receiver Freddie Solomon.

Reader's Guide

Peterson was selected by the Indianapolis Colts in the second round (36th overall) of the 1999 NFL draft. He played for the Colts for four seasons, then for the Jacksonville Jaguars for six seasons, and later for the Atlanta Falcons. He became an unrestricted free agent on March 13, 2012, but re-signed with the Falcons on July 23, 2012. He again became an unrestricted free agent in 2013. After retiring, he returned to the University of Florida in 2013 to complete his undergraduate degree, worked as an undergraduate assistant coach on the Gators strength and conditioning staff, then became its coordinator in 2014. In 2016, he was hired as outside linebackers coach at South Carolina. On January 5, 2022, he was hired as outside linebackers coach at Florida.

Did You Know?

• Peterson was a member of the 1996 Florida Gators team that won the Bowl Alliance national championship by defeating Florida State 52–20 in the Sugar Bowl.
• He earned second-team All-Pro honors in 2005.
• Peterson and his wife established the Mike Peterson Foundation in 2004 to support under-served youth and families in Alachua, Jacksonville, and Atlanta.
• The Mike Peterson Foundation's Top Dog Readers Club literacy program operates at Grove Park Elementary School in Atlanta.