TYLER, Texas — A phone call changed DeMarvion Overshown's life forever during the third round of the NFL draft Friday night.
The energy was electric all night at the linebacker's draft party in Tyler, with music and dancing filling the night with joy. However, the anticipation lingered in the air as every pick continued to be announced on the big screen.
Overshown was no stranger to the dance floor throughout the night, but remained glued to his phone the whole time and waited for the call of a lifetime.
Then, his phone rang. As he looked at the screen and saw the call coming from a Dallas area code, he knew his life had changed forever.
"It's a feeling that I'll never forget. People asked me all night what I was going to be like once my name got called," Overshown said. "'Are you going to cry or yell?' It happened so fast that I did all of it. It's a feeling I'll never forget. I'm going to cherish this moment forever."
Moments later, Overshown returned to the room, his eyes glued to the big screen. His family and friends surrounded him as they heard the magic words on the TV:
"With the 90th pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, the Dallas Cowboys select ... DeMarvion Overshown!"
Immediately, the building erupted in deafening cheers. The moment was real for Overshown as he had only dreamed of becoming part of the Cowboys team for years.
From Arp to Austin to Dallas, the East Texan is staying right here in the Lone Star State.
"The Cowboys are getting a versatile player - a player you can put anywhere, and he can feel comfortable," Overshown said. "A high motor guy. A guy that's going to make those plays that's going to need to be made."
Everyone sees the moment the hard work comes to fruition. However, not many see or realize the sacrifices that go into making your dreams a reality.
DeMarvion's mother Felicia Williams is the prime witness to all that hard work that her son has put in to rise to the top, and she said that nobody deserves it more than her son.
"I'm very proud of my son. Many times he wanted to give up, but he hung in there. All praise to God. I just love my son, he's a great person and we just thank God for this opportunity," Williams said. "We just ask the Cowboys to give him a chance to get on the field and do his thing. He's going to do it. He's going to give them all he's got."
That long journey to the NFL Draft began right here in East Texas, in the small town of Arp. No one is more proud of their hometown than DeMarvion is for Arp.
"Small town Arp! The community is so strong that it feels like we have a 20,000-person community. But it's a little small town, 900 people," Overshown said. "But I know they're with me, so it's easy to just go there and do what I'm supposed to do. I can come back and feel loved and feel celebrated."
Overshown and his family will remember this moment forever. But the journey isn't finished yet. In fact, it's just beginning.
"I see what Dan Quinn is doing with that defense every year and it's only getting better. To be a part of something that special, it's something that I won't take for granted," Overshown said. "I'm going to go in there, and I'm going to work to get on the field. And when I get on the field, it's going to look like I belong there."