Jadeveon Davarus Clowney (/dʒəˈdɛviɒn/ jə-DEV-ee-on; born February 14, 1993) is an American professional football defensive end. He played college football for the South Carolina Gamecocks, winning the Ted Hendricks Award and SEC Defensive Player of the Year in 2012, along with earning consecutive first-team All-American honors between 2012 and 2013. Clowney was selected first overall in the 2014 NFL draft by the Houston Texans, where he spent five seasons. During his final three seasons with the Texans, Clowney received three consecutive Pro Bowl selections and one second-team All-Pro selection. Following his departure from Houston, he played with the Seattle Seahawks, Tennessee Titans, Cleveland Browns, Baltimore Ravens, Carolina Panthers, and Dallas Cowboys.

Clowney was born February 14, 1993, in Rock Hill, South Carolina. He attended South Pointe High School, where he played for the Stallions high school football team. Already 6’ 3” and 200 lbs as a freshman in 2007, he played running back and defensive end for the school's junior varsity team. In his sophomore year he joined rising seniors Stephon Gilmore and DeVonte Holloman (both four-star recruits) on a South Pointe varsity coming off a 9–4 season. By spring practice, Clowney became a permanent fixture at defensive end. "We knew we had something special. He was 13 years old in that big athletic body. He was wreaking havoc on our offense that spring and fall," said Bobby Carroll, his coach at South Pointe. South Pointe went 15–0 for the season, including a 35–14 win over town-rival Northwestern High at Memorial Stadium for the 2008 South Carolina AAAAAA Division 1 title and a No. 3 spot in the overall annual MaxPreps high school ranking. Despite playing nearly the entire season with a bone spur in his foot, Clowney finished with 17 sacks. He opted to have surgery on the foot in January 2009.

South Pointe had 31 seniors graduate after the 2008 season, including Gilmore and Holloman. Still, Clowney helped the team to a 10–4 record for the season, and a state semifinal berth, where the Stallions lost to Northwestern. Clowney finished the season with 144 tackles and 23 sacks. In his senior season Clowney tallied 162 tackles, 29.5 sacks, 29 tackles for loss, 11 forced fumbles, and six fumble recoveries, and scored five touchdowns on defense while helping lead his team to a 13–2 record. South Pointe made the state finals for the second time in three years, but lost 23–27 to Myrtle Beach at USC's Williams-Brice Stadium. Still, Clowney was named South Carolina's 2010 Mr. Football. South Pointe was 38–6 during his three varsity seasons.

Immediately following his senior season Clowney went to Spartanburg for the Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas, where he registered 5 tackles (2 solo, 3 assists), 3 sacks for a loss of 15 yards, 2 tackles for a loss of 17 yards, and 2 quarterback hurries. Clowney was lined up against the North Carolina left tackle on every snap he played and drew five holding calls. After the Shrine Bowl, Clowney headed to Orlando, Florida, for a week of Under Armour All-America Game practices and then the all-star game itself. He was the leading tackler for the Red with seven and had 1.5 sacks. Recruiting analysts were particularly interested in his matchup with Cyrus Kouandjio.

Afterwards, Clowney headed to New York City, for a photo shoot for an ESPN the Magazine feature story that appeared in the journal's February 2011 issue.

During and throughout the entirety of his middle school and high school career, Clowney was often regarded as the best player in his class. ESPN described him as "a special talent who could have vied for the top spot in several previous classes". Both major recruiting services, Rivals.com and Scout.com, as well as ESPNU, considered Clowney not only a five-star recruit, but also they all voted him unanimously as the consensus No. 1 overall prospect of the 2011 class, basically throughout the entirety of his senior year. Unsurprisingly, he received scholarship offers from nearly every perennial BCS powerhouse. However, Clowney left his decision open until after National Signing Day of 2011.

In a live broadcast on ESPN on his eighteenth birthday—February 14, 2011—Clowney announced his commitment to South Carolina, selecting the Gamecocks over Clemson, Alabama, Louisiana State, and Florida State. He was the third-straight South Carolina "Mr. Football" to sign with the Gamecocks, following in the footsteps of his South Pointe teammate Gilmore, and Duncan Byrnes' Marcus Lattimore. "I wanted to play in the SEC. It was easy," Clowney said. "I knew a week ago. I just tried not to tell anybody." Just days earlier, a story in the New York Times questioned Clowney's academic eligibility, but Clowney told reporters he "had no concerns and would be fine".

Clowney was also on the school's track & field team, where he competed as a sprinter, shot putter and discus thrower. He took ninth in the 100 meters at the 2011 York County Championships, with a career-best time of 11.43 seconds. He recorded a personal-best throw of 14.82 meters in the shot put at the 2011 State Championships, and also ran the fourth leg on the 4 × 100 meter relay squad, helping them earn a third-place finish at 42.86 seconds.