American football player
 Overton with the Philadelphia Stars | |
| No. 5, 14, 16 | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Wide receiver |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | (1998-04-19)April 19, 1998 Greensboro, North Carolina, U.S. |
| Died: | September 7, 2024(2024-09-07) (aged 26) Greensboro, North Carolina, U.S. |
| Height: | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) |
| Weight: | 210 lb (95 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Page (Greensboro) |
| College: | Clemson (2016–2019) |
| Undrafted: | 2020 |
| Career history | |
| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
Diondre Overton (April 19, 1998 – September 7, 2024) was an American professional football player who was a wide receiver. After playing college football for the Clemson Tigers, he spent time with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, Vienna Vikings, Philadelphia Stars, Pittsburgh Maulers, and Memphis Showboats.
Early life and college
Overton was born on April 19, 1998, in Greensboro, North Carolina. He attended Walter Hines Page Senior High School in Greensboro, North Carolina, where he competed in football and basketball. As a junior, he averaged 14.6 points per game in basketball and made 31 catches for 577 yards in football. As a senior in football, he made 78 receptions for 1,251 yards and scored 15 touchdowns. He was the number four overall prospect in the state according to 247Sports.
Overton committed to Clemson University over offers from NC State, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. As a freshman in 2016, he made two catches for 48 yards and scored a touchdown on his first career reception. In 2017, Overton played in 14 games and made 14 catches for 178 yards. As a junior in 2018, he caught 14 passes and scored three touchdowns while gaining 199 yards in 14 games.
As a senior in 2019, Overton recorded 22 catches for 352 yards and scored three touchdowns, appearing in 15 games with five starts. He was voted a team captain and was an Academic All-Atlantic Coast Conference selection. In a win against Boston College, he tied the school record with three touchdown catches, making a career-high 119 yards to earn offensive player of the game and Atlantic Coast Conference receiver of the week honors.
Overton won two national championships at Clemson (in 2016 and 2018), and finished his college career with 52 catches for 777 yards and seven touchdowns.
Professional career
After spending 2020 out of football, Overton was signed by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League in June 2021. He was released shortly afterwards.
In November 2021, Overton was signed by the Vienna Vikings of the European League of Football.
Overton was selected by the Philadelphia Stars of the United States Football League (USFL) in the 16th round of the 2022 USFL draft. He was ruled inactive for the game against the Tampa Bay Bandits on May 21, 2022, with a hamstring strain.
On October 4, 2023, Overton signed with the Pittsburgh Maulers of the USFL. The Maulers folded when the XFL and USFL merged to create the United Football League (UFL).
On January 5, 2024, Overton was selected by the Memphis Showboats during the 2024 UFL dispersal draft.
Statistics
| Year | Team | Games | Receiving | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | ||
| 2022 | PHI | 6 | 5 | 12 | 200 | 16.7 | 41 | 3 |
| 2023 | PHI | 10 | 9 | 30 | 333 | 11.1 | 37 | 2 |
| 2024 | MEM | 3 | 33 | 11.0 | 26 | 0 | ||
| Career | 16 | 14 | 45 | 566 | 12.6 | 41 | 5 | |
Death
On September 7, 2024, Overton was shot and killed while attending a party in Greensboro. He was 26 years old.
References
- "Diondre Overton". Canadian Football League.
- Sayles, Damon (May 14, 2015). "Diondre Overton Balancing Life, College Choices as a 2-Sport Star Athlete". Bleacher Report.
- ^ "Diondre Overton". Clemson Tigers. June 21, 2016.
- "Four-star receiver Diondre Overton to announce choice at Semper Fi game". USA Today. January 2, 2016.
- Webster, Danny (January 4, 2016). "Diondre Overton to Clemson: Tigers Land 4-Star WR Prospect". Bleacher Report.
- Hope, Dan (September 19, 2016). "The Play: Diondre Overton scores on first career catch". Independent Mail.
- Hall, Christopher (June 8, 2020). "2019 Recap: Overton's Hat Trick Guides Clemson Past Boston College". Sports Illustrated.
- Nakos, Pete (June 2021). "Tigers Today: Former Clemson national champ Diondre Overton signs CFL deal". on3.com.
- "Former Clemson wide receiver signs with CFL team". theclemsoninsider.com. June 29, 2021. Retrieved September 10, 2024.
- ^ Malchow, Alex (November 28, 2021). "ELF: Vienna Vikings sign former Clemson WR Diondre Overton". americanfootballinternational.com. Retrieved September 10, 2024.
- Durham, Andy (February 23, 2022). "WR Diondre Overton (Page HS/Clemson) selected by the Philadelphia Stars in the USFL Draft". Greensboro Sports. Retrieved September 10, 2024.
- @USFLStars (May 21, 2022). "Roster updates for today's game vs Tampa Bay" (Tweet). Retrieved May 24, 2022 – via Twitter.
- @USFLStars (May 20, 2022). "Game Status Report" (Tweet). Retrieved May 24, 2022 – via Twitter.
- Larsen, James (October 4, 2023). "Pittsburgh Maulers Sign WR Diondre Overton In USFL Free Agency". USFL Newsroom. Retrieved October 5, 2023.
- Seifert, Kevin (January 1, 2024). "Newly formed United Football League sets 8 markets, tabs coaches". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
- "UFL Dispersal Draft Results for Former XFL, USFL Teams". Sports Illustrated UFL on FanNation News, Analysis and More. January 6, 2024. Retrieved January 7, 2024.
- "Philadelphia Stars Team Stats". foxsports.com. Retrieved May 12, 2022.
- "Diondre Overton Stats". FootballDB.com. Retrieved September 20, 2024.
- Raynor, Grace (September 7, 2024). "Former Clemson WR Diondre Overton dies at 26". The New York Times.
- Smith, Rebecca (September 8, 2024). "Clemson Alumnus Killed in Shooting; Deputies Investigating, Guilford County Sheriff's Office Says". WXII-TV. Retrieved September 14, 2024.
Further reading
- Keepfer, Scott (April 17, 2020). "Overlooked and Underrated? Former Clemson Receiver Diondre Overton Makes His NFL Bid". The Greenville News. Greenville, SC.
- Needleman, Joshua (October 28, 2019). "Clemson receiver glad he didn't transfer: 'I was hoping and praying for a night like this'". The Post and Courier. Charleston, SC.
- Sirera, Joe (January 10, 2020). "Overton Stayed the Course at Clemson". News & Record.
- 1998 births
- 2024 deaths
- Players of American football from Greensboro, North Carolina
- American football wide receivers
- Clemson Tigers football players
- Hamilton Tiger-Cats players
- Vienna Vikings players
- Philadelphia Stars (2022) players
- American expatriate players of American football
- American expatriate sportspeople in Austria
- Pittsburgh Maulers (2022) players
- Players of Canadian football from North Carolina
- Canadian football wide receivers
- Memphis Showboats (2022) players
- Deaths by firearm in North Carolina