Fentrell Cypress goes in-depth on coaching style of Pat Surtain

Fentrell Cypress II enjoyed a breakout season last year with the Virginia Cavaliers, establishing himself as one of the best defensive backs in all of college football. He led the ACC with 14 pass breakups and 1.56 passes defended per game.

He earned second team All-ACC honors and thrived under John Rudzinkski’s scheme. This offseason, he decided to enter the transfer portal and join the Florida State Seminoles.

His new defensive backs coach with the ‘Noles is Pat Surtain, one of the more gifted defensive backs the game of football has ever seen. Recently, Cypress spoke with the media about Surtain’s coaching style.

Fentrell Cypress on Patrick Surtain, Sr.

“It’s been a lot of fun. Coach was saying he played the position and Coach Fuller has been talking to me since I was in the portal, so I already had that relationship with him. And they have different type of teaching styles. It’s good though, to learn it from both ways. And just doing that, it helps you see it from their point of view, from a coach standpoint, from a coach that actually played the position. So, it just helps a ton from both sides,” Cypress said.

A reporter asked the gifted corner if it’s easy to tell whether or not Patrick Surtain played the position. “Yeah, it’s pretty easy to tell he played, you know. He understands the game. He’s been in the same position I’ve been in, as well, so he understands at the end of the day, when you’re on the field, you’ve gotta make the play. So, you just can’t be a robot out there. You know what I’m saying? It’s good that you have a coach that supports you,” Cypress said.

He also described Surtain’s coaching style. “Pretty calm. Calm because he understands the pressure you have as a DB. Everybody has eyes on you and things of that nature. So, overall, he’s just a calm guy. Teaches you what you did wrong and what you did right. And he’s supportive every day,”

Surtain had elite ball skills when he played in the National Football League, posting the best numbers of his career with the Miami Dolphins. He was a three-time Pro Bowler from 2002-2004. His career high in interceptions came in 2003 with Miami, when he snatched seven picks. From 1998-2008, he finished with 37 total interceptions in his prolific career. Surtain also racked up 538 total tackles in 163 total games in the NFL.

As a high school football coach, Patrick Surtain, Sr. found immediate success and established himself as one of the nation’s premiere head coaches in the country. During his six seasons at the helm at national powerhouse American Heritage (Plantation, Fla.), he guided the Patriots to three state championships and a 65-10 overall record.

He was named the 2020 National Coach of the Year for high school football. Before joining the Seminoles’ coaching staff, he worked as a defensive assistant with the Miami Dolphins in 2022.

His son, Patrick Surtain II, played for him at American Heritage, and went on to become a Consensus All-American at Alabama. Blessed with bloodlines like his father, Surtain II earned first team All-Pro honors in 2022, just his second season in the National Football League.