Is Mitch Jeter related to Derek Jeter? Explaining the Notre Dame kicker's famous last name | Sporting News

As Notre Dame prepares to play Penn State in the Orange Bowl and College Football Playoff semifinals, the Fighting Irish will be relying on their kicker.

Mitch Jeter, a transfer from South Carolina, has played a key role in the CFP so far , making five of his six field goal attempts, including all three against Georgia last game.

As Jeter gets introduced to the national stage, many people have noticed that he has the same name as Yankees legendary shortstop and MLB Hall-of-Famer Derek Jeter.

The name "Jeter" is not that common, so some fans have wondered whether there is any relation between the two athletes.

The Sporting News examines Mitch Jeter's background and relation with former shortstop Derek Jeter.

NCAAF HQ: L ive NCAAF scores | Updated NCAAF standings | Full NCAAF schedule Is Mitch Jeter related to Derek Jeter? Despite having the same last name, the Notre Dame kicker and the MLB Hall-of-Famer have no relation.

Mitch Jeter's parents are Andrew and Stacy Jeter, and he grew up in North Carolina.

Derek Jeter's family is famously from New Jersey and Michigan.

According to The Salisbury Post , his parents met when they were students at East Carolina, where Andrew was a collegiate swimmer.

Where is Mitch Jeter from? Jeter grew up in Salisbury, N.C.

and went to high school in Concord before committing to attend college at South Carolina over offers from Furman and East Carolina.

While in high school, Jeter also played soccer for a while before deciding to solely focus on football.

Mitch Jeter stats Year School Games FGM FGA FG% XPM XPA XP% 2020 South Carolina 9 0 0 N/A 0 0 N/A 2021 South Carolina 12 0 0 N/A 2 2 100% 2022 South Carolina 13 11 11 100% 42 44 95.5% 2023 South Carolina 12 12 14 85.7% 33 34 97.1% 2024 Notre Dame 12 11 18 61.1% 50 50 100% Jeter started his career at South Carolina but didn't become the primary placekicker until his third year in 2022.

As a Gamecock, Jeter only missed two field goals and three extra points in two seasons, which made him a coveted option in the transfer portal last year.

This season, Jeter has struggled at times on field goal attempts, but he has been perfect on extra points..

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