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The slot receiver position -- Hunter Renfrow's position -- is probably not where Diondre Overton envisioned himself lining up back when he signed at Clemson in 2016.
In those days, the progression in his mind probably went something like this: Back up Mike Williams at the boundary 9-man spot for one season. Then become another Mike Williams for two seasons. Then turn pro.
It's quite common for college football players to fall short of expectations they had for themselves entering college.
It's not as common for players with Overton's talent and physical stature to find themselves battling obscurity well into their careers.
But that's just part of the deal at Clemson, which keeps stockpiling talent on top of talent. And it's absolutely part of the deal inside the Tigers' receiving room, which looks as if it could be the most gifted assemblage in college football history.
This is great for Clemson, of course, but more complicated for people like Overton.
Put yourself in his shoes the last three years. Williams departs after playing a central role in delivering the 2016 national championship, but then in comes Tee Higgins.
A year later, here comes Justyn Ross.
And now, Dabo Swinney is saying early-enrolled studs Joseph Ngata and Frank Ladson "are as ready as any freshmen we've had come through here."
The point of this is not to say it's a negative to Overton. Rather, it takes some serious soul-searching for it to crystallize as a positive in his mind.
The transfer portal is all the rage in college football, and it's been logical for outsiders to speculate that Overton might get the itch to leave and be a headliner somewhere else in his final year of eligibility.
And in a conversation with Tigerillustrated.com earlier this week, he said he was seriously considering it heading into spring practice in late February.
But after some straight talk with his parents, Overton decided the best place for him is where he's been all along.
"Coming into the spring, I was definitely kind of iffy about it," he said. "I was just trying to keep my head focused. I talked to my parents a little bit, and they really kept me steady and helped me realize that I had to work for it. It just kind of changed my whole mindset."
Here's his logic: If he leaves, he's going to have to compete for a job. If he stays, he's going to have to compete for a job. And the cutthroat competition among Clemson's fleet of receivers is going to make him better in the end.
"I think Clemson is a place where there’s going to be a lot of talent around you everywhere," he said. "Everybody around the country kind of wants to be here. The best of the best come here. You either can sit here and compete, or complain and end up transferring at the end of the day. I chose to compete."
Attrition happens, whether it's injuries or people leaving. Renfrow and Trevion Thompson are gone, and that was expected. Amari Rodgers is out with a torn ACL, and that was not anticipated. Nor was it predicted that Derion Kendrick would be such a sensation at cornerback.
So now there's a void at the slot receiver position. Overton might not be the prototype Clemson slot receiver, but he showed during Wednesday's scrimmage that he can do damage.
During a two-minute situation, the offense needed to extend the drive to get into field-goal range. Isaiah Simmons was lined up on Overton, and Brent Venables was yelling out Overton's route to Simmons from the sideline.
Trevor Lawrence made a great throw down the seam. Overton made a great catch. The offense got the field goal, and Overton broke into a big smile later when asked about the sequence.
"I kind of thought it was going to be covered," he said. "But I kind of beat it with speed over the top and ended up getting around him, and Trevor just threw a great ball. I had to make an adjustment on it."
Adjustments are part of the game -- in more ways than one when you're a receiver at Clemson.
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