Cam Ball honors ‘Iceman’ father while chasing NFL dream
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At the NFL Scouting Combine, Cameron “Cam” Ball was evaluated like every other defensive tackle in attendance. But what he carried to the podium mattered more than any measurement.
Hanging from his neck was a photo of his father, Charles “Iceman” Ball, who passed away from cancer last June before Ball’s final season at Arkansas.
“These are the moments that me and him talked about since I was a kid,” Ball said. “Watching the combine on the couch together.”
The 6-foot-5, 320-pound Atlanta native arrived in Indianapolis as a five-year Arkansas player in an era when staying put is rare. Despite NIL opportunities elsewhere, he chose loyalty.
“I’m a loyal guy,” Ball said. “I got offered a lot of money NIL to leave. That’s not me.”
Ball started all 13 games in 2024 and recorded 47 tackles with four for loss and 1.5 sacks. As a redshirt senior captain in 2025, he totaled 27 tackles with 4.5 tackles for loss and six quarterback hurries in 11 starts. The disruption showed up on tape. The sack total did not, something he readily acknowledges.
“This past season I had the most pressures I’ve ever had,” Ball said. “But I had no sacks. I have to finish my rushes.”
That self-awareness may resonate as much as his SEC résumé. Ball believes five seasons in the conference hardened him for Sundays.
“Playing in the SEC for five years, it gets down dirty out there,” he said.
If the Atlanta Falcons call his name in April, it would feel like a full circle moment for the former Tri-Cities High standout.
“All of my family and friends are from there,” Ball said. “Wherever I’m blessed to play, especially if it’s there, then it’s a blessing.”
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Off the field, Ball runs Ball’s Bar-B-Que, a venture inspired by his father, who was a caterer. He learned the business loading grills for $20 at a time and now handles the meat himself, from ribs to whole wings, while his girlfriend Cassidy prepares the sides. It is more than a side hustle. It is connection.
“Whenever anybody talks to me,” Ball said of wearing his father’s photo, “they’re talking to him as well.”
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At the combine, Ball is betting on strength, loyalty and unfinished business as a pass rusher. The sacks did not come last season. He believes they are coming next.