Devekeyan "DeDe" Lattimore (born January 30, 1991) is an American football linebacker who is currently a free agent. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at the University of South Florida. He has been a member of the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...

and Saskatchewan Roughriders

Early years

Lattimore played running back and linebacker at

Cedar Shoals High School Cedar Shoals High School is an American high school established in 1972 in Athens, Georgia, in the Clarke County School District. It and Clarke Central High School are the district's two main high schools, and their rivalry is known as the Classic ...

. in Athens, Georgia. He recorded 96 tackles, four sacks and four forced fumbles his senior year. He was also named to the 2008 Georgia All-Star team and the All-Northeast Georgia team. Lattimore earned two Defensive Player of the Year honors in Region 8-AAAA. He rushed 88 times for 857 yards and six touchdowns his junior year. He also recorded 118 total tackles, 15 sacks and 18 quarterback hurries in 10 games.

College career

Lattimore played for the South Florida Bulls from 2010 to 2013. He was redshirted in 2009. In 2010, he was named a Freshmen All-American by Rivals.com. In 2011, he was named Second-team All- Big East by Athlon Sports and Phil Steele. In 2013, he earned Second-team All-

AAC AAC may refer to: Aviation * Advanced Aircraft, a company from Carlsbad, California * Alaskan Air Command, a radar network * American Aeronautical Corporation, a company from Port Washington, New York * American Aviation, a company from Cleveland, ...

honors, was named USF Team MVP and was a team captain, leading the Bulls with a career-best 98 tackles.

Professional career

Lattimore was rated the 14th best

inside linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

in the

2014 NFL Draft The 2014 NFL draft was the 79th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players to the league. The draft, officially the "Player Selection Meeting", was held at Radio City Music Hall in New Y ...

by NFLDraftScout.com. The website projected that he would be drafted in the seventh round or sign as an undrafted free agent. Nolan Nawrocki of NFL.com predicted that Lattimore would go undrafted and sign as a priority free agent, stating that Lattimore was a "Tightly wound, inconsistent, two-down Mike linebacker who projects as a backup inside in a 3-4, though he will have to prove his worth on special teams to last." Lattimore was signed by the

of the National Football League (NFL) on May 11, 2014, after going undrafted in the 2014 NFL Draft. He was released by the Bears on August 31 and signed to the team's practice squad on September 1, 2014. He was released by the Bears on September 11 and re-signed to the team's practice squad on October 8, 2014. Lattimore made his NFL debut on October 12, 2014, against the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...

, recording one tackle. On January 30, 2015, he was resigned to a two-year deal. He was waived by the Bears on August 15, 2015. Lattimore signed with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League on February 19, 2016. He was released by the Roughriders on April 19, 2016.

References

External links

Chicago Bears bioSaskatchewan Roughriders bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lattimore, DeDe Living people 1991 births Players of American football from Georgia (U.S. state) American football middle linebackers Canadian football linebackers African-American players of American football African-American players of Canadian football South Florida Bulls football players Chicago Bears players Saskatchewan Roughriders players Sportspeople from Athens, Georgia 21st-century African-American sportspeople