David Arthur Overstreet (September 20, 1958 – June 24, 1984) was an American 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

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 ...

in the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

(CFL) and

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 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 coach

Barry Switzer Barry Layne Switzer (born October 5, 1937) is an American former college and professional football coach. He served for 16 years as head football coach at the University of Oklahoma and four years as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys of the Natio ...

and the

Oklahoma Sooners The Oklahoma Sooners are the college athletics in the United States , athletic teams that represent the University of Oklahoma, located in Norman, Oklahoma, Norman. The 19 men's and women's varsity teams are called the "Sooners", a reference to ...

as a halfback out of the

wishbone offense The wishbone formation, also known simply as the bone, is an offensive formation in American football. The style of attack to which it gives rise is known as the wishbone offense. Like the spread offense in the 2000s to the present, the wishbone ...

Biography

A native of

Big Sandy, Texas Big Sandy is a town in Upshur County, Texas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the town's population was 1,231. A lake of the same name is cut nearly in half by U.S. Highway 80, the main thoroughfare of Big Sandy. It lies directly west ...

, David Overstreet prepped at Big Sandy High School and played his

at the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma, United States. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two territories became the ...

. One of Overstreet's great moments as a Sooner happened on October 4, 1980 when the senior halfback ran for 258 yards on 18 carries against the

Colorado Buffaloes The Colorado Buffaloes are the athletic teams that represent the University of Colorado Boulder. The university sponsors 16 varsity sports teams. Both the men's and women's teams are called the Buffaloes (Buffs for short) or, rarely, the Golden ...

as Oklahoma won big, 82-42. He had long runs of 84 and 53 yards in the contest. For Overstreet's senior season, the 5-11, 180-pound running back led the University of Oklahoma to a 10-2 record, a No. 3 ranking nationally, and the Big Eight Conference Championship while rushing for a team-leading 678 yards on 96 carries with six touchdowns. He was drafted in the

1981 NFL draft The 1981 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held during April 28–29, 1981, at the New ...

by the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team ...

in the first round, 13th pick overall. A contract dispute with the Dolphins led him to sign with the

Montreal Alouettes The Montreal Alouettes (Canadian French, French: ''Les Alouettes de Montréal'') are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has disbanded twice and been re-established thrice. The Alouettes compe ...

of the

, who, under the ownership of

Nelson Skalbania Nelson Mathew Skalbania (born February 12, 1938) is an engineer and businessman from Vancouver, British Columbia, who is best known for signing a then 17-year-old Wayne Gretzky to the Indianapolis Racers of the World Hockey Association, and for h ...

, tried to buy a big money winning team. His first season (

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...

) was successful, as he rushed for 952 yards and was the Alouettes

rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience, a rookie is typically considered needing more tra ...

of the year. His second season, with the newly renamed and dreadful

Montreal Concordes The Montreal Alouettes (Canadian French, French: ''Les Alouettes de Montréal'') are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has disbanded twice and been re-established thrice. The Alouettes compe ...

, was plagued by injury, and he only gained 190 yards rushing. He agreed to return to the Dolphins in 1983, and showed much promise, rushing for 392 yards in 14 games with a 4.6 yards per carry average. Overstreet was killed in a car accident in June 1984. He was driving northbound in his 1980 Mercedes on

Texas State Highway 155 State Highway 155 (SH 155) is a highway in the U.S. state of Texas. It runs from Palestine, Texas, Palestine to Linden, Texas, Linden as a mostly divided highway by way of Tyler, Texas, Tyler. From Palestine to Linden, SH 155 is par ...

, when his car swerved off the road about 10 miles northeast of Tyler into gasoline pumps at a service station and exploded. The Dolphins wore a helmet decal with the number 20 in his memory during their 1984 season in which they reached

Super Bowl XIX Super Bowl XIX was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Miami Dolphins and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion San Francisco 49ers to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion ...

. He was survived by his wife, Johnnie, and son, David Overstreet II, who is currently an NFL assistant coach, first with

Indianapolis Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...

and later

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, and grand-nephew Jalen Overstreet.

Statistics

References

External links

David Overstreet Career Stats; Oklahoma Sooners
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Overstreet, David 1958 births 1984 deaths People from Big Sandy, Texas American football running backs Oklahoma Sooners football players Players of Canadian football from Texas Canadian football running backs Montreal Alouettes players Montreal Concordes players Miami Dolphins players Players of American football from Upshur County, Texas Road incident deaths in Texas