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'Coach, I'm going to stay with you': Indiana Linebacker Cam Jones Rises Up as Team Leader
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INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Indiana fifth year linebacker Cam Jones wanted change after last season's gut-wrenching 0-9 conference record, and he wasted no time.
"That obviously was a problem, and we wanted to fix the problem as fast as we could," Jones said.
The Hoosiers only won two non-conference games the entire season, but the wins came early meaning Indiana dropped eight consecutive games.
When the Hoosiers fell to rival Purdue 44-7 to round out the year, Jones sent head coach Tom Allen a text the next morning asking to meet with him and some other players.
"During that conversation, we talked about what we wanted to see change and how we wanted to see it change," Jones told media at Big Ten Football Media Days at Indianapolis' Lucas Oil Stadium.
Cam Jones takes the podium at the 2022 Big Ten Football Media Days.
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For the Memphis, Tenn. native specifically, he wanted more one-on-one attention from Allen.
"I said 'Coach, I'm going to stay with you. I'm going to work with you, but I need more from you,' and he's given me more than he's ever given me since I've been here," Jones said.
Allen even let Jones and quarterback Jack Tuttle approach the team themselves for an opportunity to showcase powerful leadership.
Following the Purdue loss, Tuttle had first approached Jones about putting their heads together to come up with ideas on how to become a better football unit. The pair stayed up till 11 at night swapping ideas and creating a PowerPoint presentation complete with their standards and expectations for the team.
"They had taken the time to create this PowerPoint, and I didn't sit in there with them when they presented it because I wanted them to have that time, but I met with them ahead of time and told them 'take this out, add this in', and they did it," Allen said.
Tuttle and Jones shared their vision with the entire team around the third day the group got back to practice in the new year. Huddled together in the team room, Jones felt he made an impact.
"For me and Jack to get in front of the team, I think they actually listened," he said.
A 2021 team that ranked last in the Big Ten with 24 touchdowns and second to last with 207 total points, they were all ears.
"I want to be a player-led team, and the best teams I've coached on loved each other, cared about each other and stood up and led the team," Allen said.
The 2021 season is in the past, and Jones is prepping hard with the defense as well as Allen who said he'd give him more.
"Coach Allen told me he'd work with me personally every single day whether it was indoor or more film time," Jones said "He told me the things I needed to work on, what he saw from me."
Cam Jones motions the number one after stopping a run during the first quarter against the Cincinnati Bearcats at Memorial Stadium.
© Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports
Allen has kept his promise making sure to iron out any part of Jones' game that isn't perfect.
"When you work with a guy like that, that means everything, a guy that's willing to set aside extra time just to help you grow and be a better athlete," Jones said.
Last season, Jones was team captain for the second season and totaled 64 tackles, finished third on the team in stops and tied for second in solos. He did his part to lead the defense achieving a career-high eight stops against No. 10 Michigan State in October.
His grit and determination is the leader Allen needed and speaks highly of in every press conference.
"Ever since I've met Coach Allen, he's challenged me every single year to become a better person, a better man, a better teammate, so just for him to speak highly of me and hold me to a higher standard than anybody else in the whole building, the program, it really means a lot," Jones said.
"I know our relationship will last a long time."
It's safe to say Jones trusts Allen with his life and would do anything for the former linebackers coach.
"If he told me to run into a brick wall right now, I would just do it no questions asked because that's how much I believe in him," Jones said.
Cam Jones tackles Minnesota Golden Gophers wide receiver Chris Autman-Bell during the first quarter at Memorial Stadium.
© Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports
Another relationship Jones has benefitted from has been that of former Indiana linebacker, fellow team captain and current New York Giants player Micah McFadden.
"Me and Micah McFadden came in together in the same class, and we helped each other along the way," Jones said. "He helped me be a better leader. I helped him as well, and still to this day, I probably talk to him once a week.
McFadden was the heart of Indiana's defense last season pacing the team with 77 tackles, 49 solos and 6.5 sacks earning Phil Steele first-team All-Big Ten and second team All-Big Ten from coaches and media.
"He gives me keys on how I can take my game to the next level and also be a better leader," Jones said.
Now that McFadden is gone, Jones has his eyes on new defensive players who he feels can make a difference in this year's record.
Aaron Casey, Bradley Jennings Jr., Jared Casey and LeDarrius Cox were just some of the names Jones dropped. He claimed he could've rattled off more.
"There's no sad days," Jones said. "There's no 'I feel bad days'. We come to take care of business."
If the defense needs a boost, Jones has a favorite saying to keep his players in check: "Keep working. You're a dog. Let's go."
Jones pushes his teammates to the next level including junior tight end AJ Barner, who described what practice is like versus the linebacker.
"Extremely difficult," Barner said. "Cam's one of the best linebackers in the Big Ten, and it's just an honor to get to go up against him everyday at practice.
"You know, I take after his leadership just seeing him do it for a couple of years now. It's just awesome getting to go up against him everyday."
On the defense, senior cornerback Tiawan Mullen calls Jones a brother.
"That's my guy," Mullen said. "I know he plays hard for me, and I play hard for him. Cam's a very special player. Very special human being outside of football also.
"I love watching him play. Even when I'm in the game, I try to watch him play sometimes."
Some might call it a spark that was missing from the Hoosiers in the 2021 season, but Jones calls it this:
"The edge. Our edge and our swagger. I feel like 2020, there was no debate that we could beat anybody on the field at any time, lineup, grass, concrete, anything, and I think that during spring ball and summer training, we got our edge back."
Jones' word of the year is "work", and he's putting in enough for Allen's standards as well as his own to turn around the team. As a remaining captain without McFadden, Jones said Allen kept putting him in positions to be ready to lead.
"If you're not already ready, you'll never be ready," Jones said.
"I think that we have the potential to be one of the best defenses in the Big Ten, but it's all up to us," Jones said.
Related stories on Indiana football:
- BEST OF WHAT EACH COACH SAID AT BIG TEN FOOTBALL MEDIA DAYS On the first day of Big Ten Football Media Days, seven head football coaches spoke at the podium. We give you a breakdown of each coach's best quotes to the media about the upcoming 2022 season. CLICK HERE
- TOM ALLEN UPDATES QUARTERBACK COMP AT BIG TEN MEDIA DAYS Indiana coach Tom Allen is still looking for a starting quarterback as fall camp approaches on Aug. 2, but he gave an update on the competition on Tuesday at Big Ten Media Days at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind. CLICK HERE
- HOOSIER ROUNDTABLE PODCAST A second season of Indiana football podcasts will take place all season on HoosiersNow.com, with Hoosiers Jack Tuttle, Cam Jones, Jaylin Williams and AJ Barner joining the show throughout the season. The podcasts start on Aug. 30, with Bloomington host locations to be announced. CLICK HERE
