De’Runnya S. Wilson[1] (September 14, 1994 – January 21, 2020) was an American football wide receiver. He played college football for the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

De'Runnya Wilson
refer to caption
Wilson in 2014
No. 1,81
Position:Wide receiver
Personal information
Born:(1994-09-14)September 14, 1994
Birmingham, Alabama, U.S.
Died:January 21, 2020(2020-01-21) (aged 25)
Birmingham, Alabama, U.S.
Height:6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:218 lb (99 kg)
Career information
High school:Birmingham (AL) Wenonah
College:Mississippi State
Undrafted:2016
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards
Stats at Pro Football Reference Edit this at Wikidata

Early life

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Wilson attended Wenonah High School in Birmingham, Alabama, where he was primarily a basketball star, earning first-team Parade All-American honors in 2013. He joined the football team in his senior season, when he caught 31 passes for 682 yards and helped lead the Dragons to a 10–2 season.[1]

On the hardwood, he helped lead the Dragons to three consecutive state championships and was named the 2013 Alabama Mr. Basketball.[2]

Wilson was rated as a three-star football recruit by 247sports.com,[3] Rivals.com,[4] and Scout.com.[5] He chose to attend Mississippi State over offers from Auburn, Cincinnati, Colorado State, Louisville, Tennessee, and UAB.[3]

College career

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Freshman season (2013)

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Wilson made his debut in the first game of the 2013 season, catching 2 passes for 17 yards in a 21–3 loss to Oklahoma State in the AdvoCare Texas Kickoff.[6] Wilson's first touchdown came on a 59-yard pass from Tyler Russell against LSU.[7] Wilson had a breakout game against Texas A&M, catching 7 passes for 75 yards and 2 touchdowns.[8]

After the football season ended, Wilson played on the Bulldogs men's basketball team. He appeared in 7 games, scoring 6 points and grabbing 11 rebounds.[9]

Sophomore season (2014)

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Wilson started every game at receiver for the Bulldogs in 2014. He had four catches and a touchdown in each of the Bulldogs' wins over top 10 teams LSU,[10] Texas A&M,[11] and Auburn,[12] helping lead the Bulldogs to the #1 ranking. Wilson came on strong at the end of the season, having 8 catches each in losses to Alabama[13] and Ole Miss.[14] He followed it up with 9 catches and 2 touchdowns in the Orange Bowl.[15] Wilson was the 2014 Bulldogs' leading receiver in receptions, yards, and touchdowns.[16]

Wilson was listed on the 2014–15 men's basketball roster,[17] but did not appear in any games.[18] Wilson's career as a basketball player was over, as it turned out later.[19]

Junior season (2015)

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Wilson had 8 catches and a touchdown in a 21–19 loss to LSU.[20] He had 102 yards and 2 touchdowns in a rainy 31–13 win over Missouri[21] and a career-high 10 receptions in a 51–50 thriller over Arkansas.[22]

Wilson ranks 5th in school history with 133 receptions, 6th with 1,949 yards, and 2nd with 22 touchdowns.

College statistics

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Season Team GP Receiving
Rec Yds Avg Lng TD
2013 Mississippi State 13 26 351 13.5 59 3
2014 Mississippi State 13 47 680 14.5 44 9
2015 Mississippi State 13 60 918 15.3 48 10
Career 39 133 1,949 14.7 59 22

Professional career

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On January 1, 2016, Wilson declared for the 2016 NFL draft.[23] He had drawn comparisons to Detroit Lions receiver Calvin Johnson,[24] Carolina Panthers receiver Kelvin Benjamin,[25] and Baltimore Ravens tight end Darren Waller.[26] Wilson participated in the NFL Scouting Combine but went undrafted, gaining only a workout with the Chicago Bears in October of that year.[27]

On March 20, 2018, Wilson joined the Albany Empire of the Arena Football League as a free agent, but never played a game as the team placed him on recallable reassignment a week later.[28]

Death

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On January 21, 2020, Wilson was found shot to death inside his Birmingham, Alabama home. He was 25 years old.[29] Wilson was the father of five children.[29]

References

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  1. ^ a b "De'Runnya Wilson bio". HailState.com. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  2. ^ "Wenonah's De'Runnya Wilson wins Mr. Basketball; Hoover's Marqu'es Webb named Miss Basketball". AL.com. April 4, 2013. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  3. ^ a b "De'Runnya Wilson". 247sports.com. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  4. ^ "De'Runnya Wilson". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  5. ^ "De'Runnya Wilson". Scout.com. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  6. ^ "J.W. Walsh helps No. 13 Oklahoma State beat Miss. State". ESPN.com. August 31, 2013. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  7. ^ "No. 10 LSU pulls away to beat Mississippi State". ESPN.com. October 5, 2013. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  8. ^ "Johnny Manziel throws 5 TDs, 3 interceptions in Texas A&M's win". ESPN.com. November 9, 2013. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  9. ^ "Mississippi State 2013–14 Season Statistics". HailState.com. March 14, 2013. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  10. ^ "Dak Prescott leads Mississippi State to first win at No. 8 LSU since 1991". ESPN.com. September 20, 2014. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  11. ^ "Dak Prescott accounts for 5 TDs in Miss. State's rout of Texas A&M". ESPN.com. October 4, 2014. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  12. ^ "Dak Prescott, No. 3 Mississippi State knock off No. 2 Auburn". ESPN.com. October 11, 2014. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  13. ^ "No. 5 Tide lock down on D to knock off top-ranked Mississippi State". ESPN.com. November 15, 2014.
  14. ^ "No. 19 Ole Miss topples No. 4 Mississippi State in Egg Bowl". ESPN.com. November 29, 2014.
  15. ^ "Justin Thomas' four total TDs lead Georgia Tech over Mississippi State". ESPN.com. December 31, 2014.
  16. ^ "Mississippi State 2014 Season Statistics". HailState.com. October 15, 2014. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  17. ^ "Mississippi State 2014–15 Roster". HailState.com. Retrieved May 16, 2015.
  18. ^ "Mississippi State 2014–15 Season Statistics". HailState.com. Archived from the original on May 12, 2015. Retrieved May 16, 2015.
  19. ^ Bonner, Michael (January 5, 2015). "Rick Ray's plan for De'Runnya Wilson: to play in the NFL". ClarionLedger.com. The Clarion-Ledger. Retrieved May 16, 2015.
  20. ^ "Leonard Fournette goes for 3 TDs to help LSU fend off Mississippi State". ESPN.com. September 12, 2015. Retrieved October 5, 2015.
  21. ^ "Dak Prescott throws four TDs to lead Mississippi State past Missouri". ESPN.com. November 5, 2015. Retrieved November 6, 2015.
  22. ^ "Late block helps Mississippi State hold off Arkansas 51–50". ESPN.com. November 21, 2015. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
  23. ^ Robbie Faulk [@robbiefaulk247] (January 1, 2016). "MSU wide receiver De'Runnya Wilson plans to declare for the NFL Draft. Wilson announced on Instagram he's played his last MSU game" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  24. ^ Scarborough, Alex (October 10, 2014). "Bear Force 1 takes off for Mississippi State". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 8, 2014.
  25. ^ "Mississippi State rising: A week behind the scenes with the Bulldogs". Sports Illustrated. October 10, 2014. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  26. ^ "NFL Events: Combine Player Profile – De'Runnya Wilson". NFL.com. Archived from the original on February 29, 2016. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  27. ^ Robinson, Dallas (October 4, 2016). "NFL Workout Updates: 10/4/16". profootballrumors.com. Retrieved March 21, 2018.
  28. ^ "Team Transactions". arenafan.com. Archived from the original on March 29, 2018. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  29. ^ a b Robinson, Carol (January 23, 2020). "De'Runnya Wilson's family seeks answers in fatal shooting". al.com. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
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