2021 Football Roster
Clayton Coll
- Position:
- Inside Linebacker
- Ht./Wt.:
- 6-3 / 235
- Class:
- Junior
- Hometown:
- Franklin, Ind.
- Prev School:
- Franklin Community HS
- High School:
- Franklin Community HS
- Major:
- Biology
Awards and Honors:
2023 Wuerffel Trophy Watch List
2023 Preseason Group of 5 All-American by HERO Sports (second team)
2023 Preseason All-MAC (first team by Athlon Sports and Pro Football Focus; second team by Phil Steele College Football Preview and College Football Network)
2022 All-MAC second team
2020, 2021, 2022 Academic All-MAC
2019 Ball State John Hodge Award (most outstanding freshman)
Member of Ball State Leadership Council and team defensive leader whose 23 career starts top all Cardinal returners ... now a three-time nominee for the prestigious Wuerffel Trophy, awarded annually to the college football player who best combined exemplary community service with athletic and academic achievement ... three-time Academic All-MAC selection while boasting a 3.77 GPA in progress towards a degree in biology ... head coach Mike Neu on Coll: "He is the unquestioned leader of our football team and he's also a top student at BSU. He runs the show defensively. He's the son of a high school coach and he is very special to us."
2022: Team captain who was second-team All-MAC while starting all 12 games and leading the Cardinals with 110 tackles, 49 solos ... finished the season with seven TFLs and a pair of sacks ... also had two QB hurries, two forced fumbles and four pass breakups ... 9.2 tackles per game ranked seventh in the MAC and 27th nationally ... collected double-digit tackles in seven games overall including six of the last seven games ... had a pass deflection and a season-high 13 tackles twice - at Central Michigan (Oct. 8) and at Kent State (Nov. 1) ... posted a career-high 2.5 TFL among 11 tackles at Toledo (Nov. 8)
2021: Played in all 13 games ... racked up 108 tackles (51 solo), including 3.0 tackles-for-loss ... ranked ninth in the MAC and 45th in the country with 8.3 tackles per game ... added two interceptions and one forced fumble ... had career-best 14 tackles vs. Toledo (Sept. 25) ... followed up with 12-tackle game and added a forced fumble vs. Army (Oct. 2) ... ended season with back-to-back double-digit tackles games with 10 vs. Buffalo (Nov. 23) and 13 vs. Georgia State (Dec. 25).
2020: Played in all eight games at linebacker and on special teams … made 19 total tackles, including 18 in a four-game stretch that culminated in the MAC Championship Game … had a career-high six tackles in that title game victory over No. 23 Buffalo … made five stops in the win at Central Michigan … member of the football program’s leadership council.
2019: Played in all 12 games as a reserve linebacker and on special teams … posted four tackles in his collegiate debut against Indiana … also notched four tackles the following week against Fordham … teamed up with Brock Burns for a strip sack and fumble recovery at the end of the first half in the win over Toledo on Oct. 19 … joined the team in the 2019 spring semester.
HIGH SCHOOL: Lettered four years for his father and head coach Chris Coll -- the first two at Tri-West High and the final two at Franklin Community High … 3-star recruit via 247Sports … an IFCA Top 50 selection as a senior ... earned Class 5A Junior All-State honors from the IFCA and all-state honorable mention recognition from the Associated Press in 2017 ... All-Mid-State Conference first team as a junior and senior ... the Johnson County Defensive Player of the Year as a senior ... set the Franklin Community career record for tackles with 320 in only two seasons ... had a school-record 176 tackles as a senior ... finished his high school career with 408 tackles, five forced fumbles and three interceptions ... set the school record for the power clean weight lift at 350 pounds ... also lettered two years in track and one in volleyball ... four-year honor roll member ... served on Franklin Community’s Athletic Leadership Council and School Leadership Group.
PERSONAL: Son of Chris and Deena Coll … two older brothers ... father, Chris, played football and basketball at Franklin College … brother, Casey, played tight end at Ball State ... graduated with a B.S. in biology and pre-med, and currently is pursuing a business degree in the Ball State graduate program ... plans to tackle med school after football with hopes of being an orthopedic surgeon and perhaps a team doctor ... the only Ball State player who is married ... married his high school sweetheart, Ali, who is a former collegiate swimmer ... she later graduated from Ball State and now studies medicine, too.
