University of West Florida

A two-year player, Durden finished his UWF career with 1,915 yards, 88 receptions and a program-record-tying 23 touchdowns. His UWF career receiving total is second in Argo history in just two seasons ... His 25 total touchdowns also include a rushing and punt return score to tie for the all-time UWF mark with Shomari Mason.

2022 AP & AFCA First Team All-America
2022 First Team All-GSC at both WR and PR
2022-23 UWF Hercules Award winner as top male student-athlete
 
2022 (Sr.): Started the final 12 games at WR ... Led the Argonauts with 1,128 receiving and 248 punt return yards ... Established a UWF single-season record with 13 touchdowns and his receiving yards rank second in a season ... Had four games with at least 100 yards receiving and two more at 97 while averaging 86.8 yards per game ... Finished with 54 receptions and posted a yards per catch average of 20.9 ... One of the most feared punt return men in the country, finishing with a 17.7 average on 14 returns with a touchdown ... Led the nation for most of the season and eventually was not kicked to in the last month ... Finished third in the country in punt return average and totaled 106.3 all-purpose yards per game.

2021 Don Hansen All-America Honorable Mention
2021 First Team All-GSC

2021 (Jr.): First Team All-GSC and Don Hansen All-America Honorable Mention ...  Started nine games at WR and missed two due to injury ... Led the team with 787 receiving yards on 34 catches with 10 TD ... Also paced the receiving corps with 23.15 yards per catch and 87.4 yards per game ... Ranked second in the GSC in receiving ypc and ypg, third in receiving TD, and fifth in both receiving yards and scoring per game (7.3) ... Scored at least one TD in UWF's first five games ... Opened his UWF career with a season-best game of 172 yards on six receptions at McNeese (9/4/2021), while scoring TDs on a 44-yard pass reception and a 6-yard run ... Caught two TD in three games - vs. SW Baptist (9/11/2021), at Delta State (10/2/2021) and at West Alabama (11/6/2021) ... .

2020: UWF did not compete in the Fall or Spring due to COVID-19 pandemic.

Spent two seasons as a starting wide receiver at Mercer before transferring to UWF in the summer of 2020 ... Also played professional baseball as a 20th round draft pick of the Boston Red Sox in 2017.

2019 First Team All-SoCon Return Specialist (Coaches & Media)
2019 Second Team All-SoCon Wide Receiver (Coaches)
2019 Phil Steele’s All-SoCon Second Team
2018 HERO Sports FCS Freshman All-American
2018 SoCon All-Freshman Offense Team

2019 (So. at Mercer): Appeared in nine games with eight starts ... Named First Team All-SoCon by the Coaches’ and Media as a return specialist and Second Team All-SoCon by the Coaches’ as a wide receiver ... Totaled 45 receptions for 647 yards and four touchdowns ... Returned 29 kickoffs for 750 yards (25.9 avg.) ... Ranked second in the SoCon in receiving yards per game (71.9) and all-purpose yards per game (155.2) ... Posted the fifth-most receptions per game (5.0) in SoCon ... Set career highs in receptions (9), receiving yards (129) and receiving touchdowns (2) against Austin Peay (Sept. 14).

2018 (Fr. at Mercer): Earned SoCon All-Freshman Team honors after emerging as a dynamic playmaker ... Named to the HERO Sports FCS Freshman All-American Team as an honorable mention selection ... Started all 10 games played as a wide receiver & kick returner ... Totaled seven touchdowns on the season (five receiving, one passing, one kick return) ... Caught 18 passes for 407 receiving yards, both ranking third on the team ... Averaged a team-best 22.6 yards per catch ... Recorded over 400 all-purpose yards & five total touchdowns in the month of October ... Scored three touchdowns on five touches at Yale (Oct. 13), tossing an 11-yard touchdown pass on a trick play while adding two receiving touchdowns on three catches for 122 yards ... Set a school record with a 95-yard kick return for a touchdown vs. Western Carolina (Oct. 20) ... Finished the season with eight returns for 221 yards (27.6 yards per return) ... Caught a season-best five passes for 50 yards & one touchdown vs. The Citadel (Sept. 22) ... Tallied seven tackles (five solo, two assisted) on special teams.

HIGH SCHOOL: Helped ECI baseball to a 78-34 record over four years ... Led ECI baseball to a Final Four appearance in 2014, state title in 2015, Elite 8 in 2016 & Sweet 16 in 2017 ... Led GHSA with eight home runs as a senior in 2017 ... Named Region Player of the Year in baseball as a senior.

PERSONAL: Full name is John David Durden II ... Born on Dec. 26, 1998 ... Son on Jeana & John Durden ... Has two sisters, Zoey & Mary Katherine & one brother, Evan ... Father, John, played baseball at Air Force ... Selected as an outfielder by Boston Red Sox in 20th round of 2017 MLB First-Year Player Draft ... Batted .220 (20-for-91) with seven runs & nine RBI in 30 career games.