Survivor season 35 cast: Alan Ball is accustomed to being on an island

A member of the Heroes Tribe for Survivor: Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers, former NFL player Alan Ball is no stranger to being on an island.

In the game of football, cornerbacks lining up across from wide receivers in man-to-man coverage and are left to fend for themselves. These situations create one-on-one matchups where it’s one man’s skills versus another’s. Football fans refer to the cornerback as being out on an island in such situations. Thus, Alan Ball should feel comfortable competing on Survivor: Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers.

Ball played nine years in the NFL after being drafted in the seventh round of the 2007 draft. He spent time with the Dallas Cowboys, Houston Texans, Jacksonville Jaguars, Chicago Bears and then went to training camp with the Arizona Cardinals before getting injured and ultimately retiring. A cornerback by trade in the game of football, he was never a star on the field.

That’s something he’s aware of, though, and something that could work to his advantage in the game of Survivor. We’ve seen in the pasts how quickly things can turn sour when a celebrity is recognized. Whatever come’s Alan’s way, though, he seems prepared judging by his “Meet Survivor season 35 Castaway” video:

It very clearly seems that Ball has an analytical head on his shoulders. There are times where athletes or athletic people come into Survivor expecting that to be enough. No one is doubting what Ball — still just 32 years old — is going to be able to do athletically. He’s likely to be the best of the cast in that regard. But it’ll be his strategy that helps him succeed.

What always strikes me as a favorable part of first impressions, though, is the acknowledgement of the unknown. Even if you know the game and know yourself, Survivor brings out different things inside of a person because of the nature of the game. As Ball says, he normally only showed his temper on the field. That said, he doesn’t know what to expect when he’s hungry, hot and bothered.

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Admittedly, he could react poorly and thus things could go badly for Alan. At the same time, though, the admission of not knowing how he’ll react shows a level of consciousness that is critical in this game. You have to not only be aware of interactions and alliances, but perhaps more importantly of personal shortcomings — or in this case potential shortcomings.

Perhaps just as interesting, though, is what Ball had to say about his playing style. As stated in previous cast assessments, one of the questions CBS asked castaways was which past players they were most like. Alan’s answer was curious:

"I honestly don’t think you will see gameplay like mine; one of the only things I have in common with people on past seasons is there was a winner."

Frankly, I’m not a huge fan of an answer like that. For a castaway who, overall, comes off as impressive on the surface, this waves at least one red flag. He either has limited knowledge of the game’s history (something that could lead to mistakes), or he has a very high opinion of his game. Either way, that could spell bad news for him.

So what do we know about Alan? He’s going to be valuable and a threat in challenges, there is a plan in place for if he’s recognized as an NFL player or not, and there are some signs that he might have a bit of a high opinion of himself. What does that mean about his game in practice? That remains to be seen.

Next: Survivor Athletes: Ranking The Best To Play The Game

Survivor: Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers will premiere on Wednesday, Sept. 27 on CBS at 8:00 p.m. ET.