Hometown Heroes: Amari Spievey

​If you lived in Connecticut during 2005, you most certainly remember the name Amari Spievey. He was one of the most dynamic high school football players in the state’s history and he would awe local football fans with his speed, power, and athleticism on a weekly basis. He’s a local kid that made it to football’s biggest stage and he may have one or two of those awe moments left in him before hanging up his cleats.
 
Spievey burst onto the Connecticut football landscape during his freshman year at Xavier High School and his coach, Sean Marinan, knew from the day one that the new freshman running back was going to be special.  “First time I ever watched him in a freshman game.” Marinan answered when asked when he first thought Spievey had a unique gift that could eventually make take him to the next level. 
 
Marinan had the privilege of coaching Spievey for four seasons at Xavier, which concluded with a Class LL state title during Spievey’s senior season. Spievey was also selected as the 2005 Connecticut Player of the Year that same season. He finished his illustrious high school career with an astonishing 60 total touchdowns and a school-record 3,606 rushing yards.
 
Spievey is blessed with a ton of natural athletic ability, but it was another trait that allowed him to flourish at football, according to his coach. “[Amari] was tough,” Marinan said, “He never ran out of gas and was a tremendous competitor.”
 
Spievey graduated from Xavier and was recruited by a number of Division-I colleges. He ultimately chose the University of Iowa where he would become one of the nations most feared defensive backs. At Xavier, he played both running back and defensive back, but his coach at Iowa, Kirk Ferentz, recruited him as a cornerback. Spievey became a starter in 2008 and during his junior season in 2009 he took the country by storm, earning first-team All-Big Ten honors.
 
Following his spectacular junior season, Spievey decided to forgo his senior season at Iowa and enter the National Football League (NFL) draft. Many draft experts dubbed him as a sleeper leading up to the draft. A sleeper is defined in draft circles as someone that may not be a top draft pick, but possesses the ability to excel at the next level.  Professional general managers loved his coverage skills, thriving as a cornerback against elite Division-I competition. Professional coaches loved him for his physicality, never shying away from contact and rarely missing a tackle in college. This desired combination allowed Spievey to move up NFL draft boards prior to draft day.
 
The Detroit Lions selected Spievey in the 3rd round of the 2010 NFL draft. The Lions were coming off their two worst seasons in franchise history, in which they compiled a record of 2-30. Detroit’s defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham decided to move Spievey from cornerback to safety in an effort to maximize his physical abilities and allow him to play in space more often. The move paid off as he finished his rookie season with two interceptions and three pass deflections in nine starts. In 2011, Spievey’s role expanded and he continued to prosper. He started 15 games, finishing with three interceptions, four pass deflections, and 65 total tackles. His excellent play in the secondary helped the Lions finish 10-6 and they earned their first playoff berth in eleven seasons. Things were looking up for the former Xavier superstar until he suffered a concussion during a Wild Card playoff loss to the New Orleans Saints. Concussions have become a hot topic and point of contention in the NFL over the past couple of years due to the long term ramifications of head injuries. The good news for Spievey was that he had the entire offseason to recover and he returned as the Lions’ starting strong safety to begin the 2012 season. However, seven weeks into the season, he suffered the second concussion of his NFL career in a Monday night loss to the Chicago Bears. The concussion ended his season and he has yet to play another game in the league.
 
Spievey was still under contract with Detroit following the 2012 season and he was medically cleared to resume playing. However, during the 2013 offseason, he ran into legal trouble when he was charged with third-degree assault on March 26th in his hometown of Middletown. He became the seventh Detroit Lions player to be arrested in a two year span. Unlike his teammates, Spievey had all of the charges against him dropped on June 28th of this year and was ready to put the incident behind him and return to action.
 
Whether it was his legal troubles or lack of production, the Lions released Spievey on August 31st and the former Xavier standout became an unrestricted free agent. Despite all of his abilities, he faced the uphill challenge to sign with another team because he happened to enter a free-agent market loaded with several other talented safeties. This market included former Pro-Bowlers Kerry Rhodes and Michael Huff. Ironically, Spievey had a workout with Chicago on September 17th, but the Bears decided not to sign him following the workout and he has remained unsigned ever since.
 
If Spievey does get another chance to be on an NFL roster, expect him to make the most of his opportunity. He is only 25 years old and he can lean on the fact that former NFL players such as Otis Smith have paved the way for defensive backs in their late twenties to have success during the latter stages of their careers. Smith, who fell out of favor with the Philadelphia Eagles in the mid-nineties, was out of football until he had two stints with both the New York Jets and New England Patriots. He was a key contributor for both teams, even recording an interception in Super Bowl XXXVI as a member of the Patriots. The interception helped launch the New England dynasty. Don’t be surprised if the story of Middletown’s hometown hero ends in a similar fashion.  

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