Versatility has Ferrell Making his Early Mark
Pete DiPrimio | IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Versatility is big at Indiana. The ability to play multiple positions, even different roles within those positions, matters.
Defensive coordinator Bryant Haines pushes it. Safeties/defensive backs coach Ola Adams and cornerbacks coach Rod Ojong implement it. As for sophomore Amare Ferrell, he’s among the Hoosiers working.
His interception against FIU, and the 20-yard return that went with it, show the possibilities. The next opportunity comes Friday night when IU (1-0) hosts Western Illinois (0-1) at Memorial Stadium.
“Coach Adams and Coach Ojong have talked to us about versatility, not just playing one position,” Ferrell said. “Everybody can play every position, high safety, in the box, high rover, whatever you want to call it. Everybody has to be versatile.”
For the 6-foot-2, 200-pound Ferrell, that puts him at rover, a hybrid position that lets him utilize his skills and athleticism to deal with the run and the pass.
The key is continuing to play to his coaches’ demands and buying in to what head coach Curt Cignetti, along with Adams and Ojong, want from him and all the Hoosiers.
“They push me and the (defensive backs) room every day,” Ferrell says. “They demand perfection from all of us every day. Everybody tries to get one percent better every day.”
Last year, as a true freshman limited to a mostly special teams role, Ferrell played in all 12 games, more than any other Hoosier freshman, and totaled 10 tackles, one for a loss.
Now he’s a starter and limits are off, opportunity is what he makes of it.
Against FIU, he added two tackles to the interception.
Playing last year accelerated his learning curve, Ferrell said.
“It’s been really beneficial. Just seeing the field as a freshman, I saw things I’d never seen before. This year, I see those things and can play faster.”
Hoosier coaches have noticed.
During August camp, Cignetti said Ferrell had a “solid spring,” has a “big future,” and that big things are expected of him.”
Ferrell benefitted by enrolling at IU at midyear in 2023 after a standout career at Florida’s Columbia High School, where he was a four-star prospect and the nation’s No. 35 defensive back prospect by Rivals. Penn State, Tennessee, Arizona and Florida State were among the programs to offer scholarships.
Despite his youth, Ferrell has leadership responsibilities he embraces.
“Last year, when I first got on the field, I was just trying to do my job. Now I’m trying to be more vocal. The older guys are stepping up and also being more vocal.”
Given the importance of communication, that could lead to difference-making secondary play.
“The secondary is coming along good,” Ferrell said. “We've got a lot of older guys. We all have a good chemistry. We talk a lot off the field and on the field. I think the secondary is going to be really good this year.”
As for the Hoosiers, ultimate success will likely come from winning close games. Their 31-7 victory over FIU wasn’t close, but with Big Ten play starting September 14 at UCLA, and with a challenging conference schedule after that, victories could come in the closing minutes.
Cignetti and his staff thrived in those situations at James Madison, going 5-1 in one-possession games last season. Cignetti plans on that continuing with the Hoosiers.
“That’s what we throw all our time and energy into,” Cignetti said. “I have a philosophy. Our assistant coaches have a philosophy. We have a way of doing things, a way we play the game, so that at the end of the game, we can play our best football.
“It’s about 11 guys doing what they’re supposed to do. The whole becomes greater than the sum of its parts. They have to have confidence and belief. They have to compartmentalize, put the last play behind them and focus on the next one. Do it again and again and again.
“In the past we’ve been really good in those situations. I expect us to be good again.”