Alan Ball life and biography

Alan Sheffield Ball is an American football cornerback and safety for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League. He was originally drafted by the Cowboys in the seventh round of the 2007 NFL Draft.

PRO: Alan Ball will have an opportunity to compete for a starting role in the defensive backfield after the club released Ken Hamlin in the offseason. He saw extended playing time in his second full season in 2009, making the move to safety and earning three starts in place of Hamlin (ankle). Prior to seeing time in defensive sets last year, Ball has been a solid special teams coverage man in his time on the field, finishing third on the team with 16 tackles last year. Ball was one-of-two of the Cowboys seventh round picks in the 2007 NFL Draft and spent the first 14 weeks of his rookie season on Dallas' practice squad before seeing action in the final two games as a reserve cornerback. After the Cowboys lost two cornerbacks in free agency leading up to 2008, Ball saw extended action, playing in 10 games, but mainly on special teams.

2009:
# Played in all 16 games with his first three career starts, switching to safety in place of Hamlin (ankle), and finished the year with 19 tackles, one tackle for lost yardage and four pass breakups.
# Also finished third on the squad with 16 special teams tackles.
# In the season-opening win at Tampa Bay (9/13), played mainly on special teams and notched two tackles.
# Had two more tackles on special teams in the Cowboys Stadium opener against the N.Y. Giants (9/20) to be named special teams captain the next week against Carolina (9/28).
# Had his first defensive tackle of the season as a reserve against the Panthers.
# Tied for the team lead with three special teams stops to go with two tackles on defense in the overtime win at Kansas City (10/11).
# Broke up one pass to go with a special teams tackle against Atlanta (10/25) before tying his season high and leading the team with three special teams tackles against Seattle (11/1).
# Played both cornerback and safety due to injuries in the second half at Green Bay (11/15) and had one stop.
# Made his first career start, playing safety in place of Hamlin (ankle), and had a season-best three tackles with one pass deflection against Washington (11/22).
# Saw time at safety once again on Thanksgiving Day against Oakland (11/26) and added a tackle and a deflection.
# Had his second start in place of Hamlin and had two tackles and a special teams stop at the N.Y. Giants (12/6) before posting a season-best four tackles and a breakup in a start against San Diego (12/13).
# Had two tackles - one on defense and the other on special teams - in the win at previously undefeated New Orleans (12/19).
# Was the special teams captain once again at Washington (12/27) with one stop before finishing with three tackles on defense and a special teams tackle in the NFC East Division clinching win in the season finale against Philadelphia (1/3/10).
# Was the special teams captain in the Wild Card Playoff Game against Philadelphia (1/9/10) and had one stop in his postseason debut.

2008:
# Opened the season at Cleveland (9/7) playing on special teams before being a game day inactive the following three weeks.
# Was active but did not play against Cincinnati (10/12) before playing on special teams at Arizona (10/12) and at St. Louis (10/26).
# Saw his first action of the season on defense and had three tackles against Tampa Bay (10/26).
# Added a defensive stop at the N.Y. Giants (11/12) then had a season and career-high three special teams tackles against Seattle on Thanksgiving Day (11/27).
# Had his first career pass breakup at Pittsburgh (12/7) followed by two tackles against the N.Y. Giants (12/14).
# Was inactive the final two games of the season with an ankle injury.

2007:
# Spent the first 14 weeks of the season on the team's practice squad.
# Saw his first action in the NFL at Carolina (12/22) recording one special teams stop.
# Recorded his first pro tackle at Washington (12/30).

COLLEGE:
# Finished his collegiate career at Illinois with 199 tackles, eight tackles for a loss, two interceptions, 23 passes defensed and one forced fumble.
# Had a career-high 62 tackles, three tackles for a loss, one interception and 13 passes defensed as a senior.
# Had a career-high four pass breakups against Indiana and a season-high 11 tackles against Eastern Illinois.
# Named the team's outstanding defensive back at the end of his junior season, playing in all 11 games, with seven starts, and leading the team with 55 total tackles.
# As a sophomore, made 10 starts and had 37 tackles, one pass defensed and one tackle for a loss.
# Recorded at least one tackle in every game he played that season.
# As a freshman, played in seven games, including five starts, and recorded 44 tackles, four passes defensed and one forced fumble.

PERSONAL:
# Alan Ball attended St. Martin De Porres in Detroit, Mich., for two years, earning PrepStar and SuperPrep all-region selection and being named to the Lansing State Journal "Catch 22" list as a senior.
# Helped lead his team to the 2001 state championship and was named a top-50 defensive back recruit nationally by Rivals.com.
# Intercepted 15 passes - including six in the postseason his senior season.
# Earned all-state honors in track - winning back-to-back 110-meter hurdles state titles as a junior and senior.
# Was enrolled in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Illinois.

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