Still Hungry – Love of the Game Fuels D’Angelo Ponds
Pete DiPrimio | IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Sometimes, in the quest for football glory, a guy has gotta disguise, confuse, disrupt.
Sometimes, if you’re standout cornerback D’Angelo Ponds seeking to elevate a game that has earned All-America accolades at two schools (Indiana and James Madison), you have to get into opponents’ heads as much as their bodies, get quarterbacks to see what you want them to and not what’s really there.
The 5-foot-9, 170-pound junior is all in.
“I’m working on disguising,” he says. “A lot of teams, when we’re in Cover 3, they’ll throw a little hitch. I have to disguise more and do more things to get the quarterback off his game.”
Quarterback confusion is among the reasons why last year the Hoosiers intercepted 15 passes, forced 16 fumbles and recovered nine, and held opponents to just 15.6 points a game.
Ponds had a big role in that by intercepting three passes, breaking up nine more, recording 57 tackles (fourth on the team) with 4.5 for loss, and blocking a kick.
And yet …
“I want more pick production,” he says.
For the record, only five Big Ten players had more interceptions last season. That included teammate Amare Ferrell, who had four. Minnesota’s Koi Perich led with five.
Ponds, who rated as the Big Ten’s best cornerback and No. 9 among Power 4 conference schools by Pro Football Focus, thrives on passion, on competitive challenges, on striving to win every play no matter the situation or opponent. His playing hunger, he says, comes from “my love for the game.”
“I’ve been playing it all my life. The hunger never goes away. I always want to find ways to get better and be the best version of myself. Do that every day.”
Head coach Curt Cignetti calls Ponds a “great competitor” who can “really move and play the ball in the air.” The numbers back him up. In two college seasons, Ponds has totaled 108 tackles, five interceptions and 22 pass breakups.
He wants more.
“For me, it's finding ways to get better. It’s little things. I'll go back and watch games from last year and find things I need to get better at.
“I’m working on myself. There are always things I can improve on as a DB. It's just taking it one day at a time, competing and finding ways to get better.”
Ponds embraces going against top receivers. Last season, that meant players such as Ohio State’s Jeremiah Smith and Emeka Egbuka, and Maryland’s Tai Felton.
“I love going against top competition and showing everybody I can compete with those guys.
“I watch a lot of film. I watch every game they played. I know their tendencies and what they like to do. That really helps me. It’s showing what I got, too.”
Ponds accepts hard coaching because he knows it will help him achieve his NFL goals, and cornerbacks coach Rod Ojong obliges.
“He’s a guy who knows a lot,” Ponds says. “He has a lot of football knowledge. He pushes me every day. He doesn’t treat me any different than anybody else.
“He doesn’t care about the success I had last year. I need that in my corner. He’s not just a yes man. He will correct me when I’m wrong. He helps get me better every day.”
While IU returns secondary starters Ponds, Ferrell and Jamari Sharpe, a group of freshmen will vie for playing time next season.
“They’re being sponges,” Ponds says. “They came in wanting to learn. They asked me questions about anything. They just take it in. I’m real excited for them.”
In terms of advice, Ponds says he tells the newcomers to “keep their heads down and work. It will happen. Find a way to get on the team, including special teams. Get the coaches to trust you. Just work on it.”
That reflects Ponds’ expanded leadership role. Ponds will join with returning defensive standouts Aiden Fisher at linebacker and Mikail Kamara at defensive end to set the leadership tone.
“We all hold the team to a high standard,” Ponds says. “I'm more of a lead-by-example type of guy. I'm working on speaking more. Aiden is more of a loud guy. I lead by example, but I still hold my guys to a high standard.”
IU, which opens its season Aug. 30 against Old Dominion, is coming off an 11-2 season capped by its first-ever playoff appearance. The first-round loss at Notre Dame still stings.
“It left a bad taste,” Ponds says. “It left all of us wanting to prove we can play to that stage and win a national championship. We want to show everybody we can do that.”