Former New Boston High School football player, Jeff Gladney, died on Memorial Day in a car accident. He was 25 years old.
Gladney, who played college football at TCU, was in a car accident at 2:28 am on Woodall Rodgers Freeway in Dallas. The initial report from the Dallas County Sheriff’s Department is that Gladney was in a white Mercedes SUV traveling at an excessive rate of speed, struck a car in front of him, and spun off, hitting a brick wall and bursting into flames. He and his girlfriend both died in the accident.
Gladney was named the District 7-3A Most Valuable Player as a senior at New Boston. He went on to play for TCU where he was named All Big-12 First Team as a Senior. He was then drafted 31st overall by the Minnesota Vikings in the 2020 NFL Draft.
Going into his rookie season with the Vikings, Gladney was not named a starter, but he would end up getting significant playing time and finished with 81 tackles and a forced fumble. However, the Vikings cut him following an arrest for an alleged physical assault of his girlfriend. Gladney was found not guilty, and earlier this year was signed by the Cardinals, where he was expected to earn a starting CB position.
