Instead of fist-bumps, hugs and kisses, mom and dad launched a reality check that hit their boy as hard as a defensive tackle.
“My parents weren’t too excited about it at first,” Overstreet explained.
“They were like, ahhh, they’re just going to throw you in the fire. You’ve never done it before. Stuff like that. But I was pretty excited.”
Overstreet won over the Elks’ coaching staff this summer in a spirited competition between Chris Kuzma and Janson Matthews that wasn’t decided until after the final scrimmage.
Eventually, mom and dad came on board, too. Besides, what’s not to like about starting for the area’s top-ranked and unbeaten Division I team?
Incredibly, Overstreet is the third straight first-year starting senior to win the Elks’ QB job, following Zak Bertram last season and Logan Hanes in 2008. Both those dual threats were good for nearly 1,000 yards rushing and passing, a measuring stick for all Elks QBs, including the 5-foot-10, 165-pound Overstreet.
Centerville nation will see just how much the newest talented senior signal-caller has progressed with the mother of all tests on Friday, Sept. 10: an epic matchup with visiting and two-time defending Division IV state champ Alter.
The DDN Game of the Week promises to pack Centerville’s 8,000-plus stadium to standing room-only capacity.
Besides all the extolling from Elks’ players, coaches and alumni, Overstreet knows he can count on encouraging words from his mother, too.
“My mom is always telling me, don’t get my baby hurt.”
Contact this writer at (937) 225-2381 or mpendleton@DaytonDailyNews.
com.
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