The Cincinnati Bearcat football syllabus was effectively handed out on the last day of July at Nippert Stadium. Coach Scott Satterfield’s second UC squad got in three sessions at Nippert Stadium before week’s end and the Bearcat buses were off to Camp Higher Ground in West Harrison, Indiana for some hot August bonding and football.
The Bearcats have been heading to the solitude of the forest since the Rick Minter years where they eat, drink, sleep and play the game in between voluminous buffet meals in a cafeteria you wished you could find off the interstate.
While there will be plenty of tales from camp in the coming weeks, here are some reactions/overreactions from UC’s “acclimation work” at The Nipp.
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There are a fair amount of duplicate numbers you should know
With 47 new scholarship players, there are new numbers to learn each season. If you’re scoring at home, Louisville transfer safety Josh Minkins Jr. and Florida Atlantic transfer receiver Tony Johnson share No. 0; Indiana transfer quarterback Brendan Sorsby and “The Godfather” Dontay Corleone share No. 2; receiver Evan Prater and Ohio State transfer safety Kye Stokes share No. 3; safety D.J. Taylor and freshman quarterback Samaj Jones share No. 5; Southern Utah transfer defensive back Trevon Gola-Callard and Ohio State transfer running back Evan Pryor share No. 6; Grambling State transfer running back Chance Williams and West Virginia transfer linebacker Jared Bartlett share No. 7, Idaho transfer cornerback Ormanie Arnold and top receiver Xzavier Henderson share No. 8; receiver Aaron Turner and freshman “star” Jiquan Sanks share No. 9; Chattanooga transfer receiver Jamoi Mayes and Virginia Tech transfer safety Derrick Canteen share No. 10; Central Arkansas transfer linebacker Jake Golday and Ohio State transfer tight end Joe Royer share No. 11; quarterback Brady Lichtenberg and Kentucky transfer corner Jordan Robinson share No. 16 and running back Corey Kiner and corner Kalen Carroll share No. 21.
2. Luke Kandra and Dontay Corleone are your best-known players and lead the team in the making of preseason lists
On Thursday, the newly married, 6-foot-4, 323-pound Kandra added the Wuerffel Trophy watch list for community service to his preseason accolades. He’s also nominated for the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team, on the Outland Trophy list, a Preseason Walter Camp Second Team All-American, and on the Preseason All-Big 12 teams voted on by Big 12 media and Athlon and Phil Steele publications. Pro Football Focus ranked him as 2024’s best-returning guard.
“It’s really an honor getting that recognition but just being with the guys, being with my family, that’s really the best part,” Kandra said. “Having them humble me is really funny. It’s easier and a lot more fun being back home.”
Corleone is on the Outland Trophy list, the Bronko Nagurski Award list, and the Preseason All-Big 12 teams selected by media, Athlon and Phil Steele.
Kandra will be spending what would have been his honeymoon in the woods of Camp Higher Ground. Corleone hopes to be cleared to play while recovering from blood clots in his lungs in June. Thus far, he’s practiced and participated in individual drills but hasn’t been involved in offense vs. defense situations.
Former Michigan State transfer Jalen Hunt appears ready to step in for “The Godfather” if he must miss games. Satterfield has repeatedly mentioned Hunt’s improvement during spring work.
“He’s up to the task,” Satterfield said. “He’ll be a great one to be able to get in there. Hopefully, Dontay will be able to come back. That’s a good 1-2 punch to rotate and there’s not a whole lot of drop-off. Hunt is not as big but adds more quickness. That’s a good combination to have with those guys at nose (tackle).”
3. Eastern Michigan transfer Mikah Coleman is out for the season
Satterfield made it public just before practice during the week that the 6-foot-4, 255-pound redshirt junior had suffered a lower leg injury in June. Coleman, from Reynoldsburg, was a projected starter and would have shared reps on the end with redshirt seniors Eric Phillips and Wisconsin transfer Darian Varner.
Still in good spirits, Coleman was wearing a boot but peddling an exercise bike this week. The upside of the COVID-19 “extra year” is that he’ll have two years of eligibility upon his return.
4. Redshirt junior linebacker Jake Golday is quite the specimen
Defensive coordinator Tyson Veidt noticed the UC’s linebackers were “spent” late in the year from being on the field too much. Jack Dingle and Jonathan Thompson return and the Bearcats added Jared Bartlett from West Virginia who played in 50 games over four years with 134 tackles and 21 tackles for loss.
Looking for depth in the offseason, they found 6-foot-4, 235-pound Golday from Central Arkansas where he had 82 tackles, 3.5 sacks, and a pair of fumble recoveries. UC General Manager Zach Grant called him, “the best linebacker in the portal.” Satterfield has said he resembles teammate Dingle in size and speed.
UC’s “Catapult” vests measure running in terms of miles per hour and Golday is one of several Bearcats who can hit 22 miles per hour. That equates to a sub-4.5 40-yard dash.
“He’s a freakishly athletic guy,” Bartlett said. “He runs 22 miles per hour, he jumps almost a 40-inch vertical. He’s a freak and I think he’s going to be a really good addition to the defense.”
5. Don’t sweat the tight ends
UC lost starter Chamon Metayer and Payten Singletary in the portal. Metayer had a pit stop at Colorado before going on to Arizona State. Satterfield has repeatedly said Elder product Joe Royer can be one of the best tight ends in the country, plus they added some familiarity when they added 6-foot-3, 240-pound Francis Sherman who had played at Louisville before playing last year at Arkansas. Then there’s Joey Beljan, out injured last season but with a solid reputation at Western Kentucky where GM Zach Grant was before going to Ohio State in 2022, then here last season.
Satterfield calls the tight ends, UC’s “most improved room” and offensive coordinator Brad Glenn agrees.
“To have that many guys that can do multiple things is a big advantage for us,” Glenn said. “We struggled in the red zone last year. Having those guys to be viable options in the red zone will be a huge help in that department.”
6. Slot receivers are plentiful
Aaron Turner returns after 11 catches last year, while Barry Jackson Jr. had just four but showed plenty of flash. UTEP transfer Tyrin Smith is slippery and had a slew of catches for the Miners and post-spring addition Jamoi Mayes has looked sharp and was a go-to receiver at Chattanooga. He transferred to the Bearcats after a spring at UAB.
“He’s trying to learn everything this summer and he made some plays (Wednesday),” Satterfield said. “He’s got wide shoulders. He was 206 when he weighed in (5-foot-11). He’s got a really good frame with really soft hands and a willing blocker outside.”
7. There’s still a Fickell on the field
The oldest son of former coach Luke Fickell, Landon, was an offensive lineman at Moeller and on UC’s roster. However, injury issues got him medically disqualified. Noticeably thinner, Landon Fickell is now a student assistant with the Bearcats and never left Cincinnati for Wisconsin.
8. Carter Brown has the distance
Junior kicker Carter Brown was 15-for-19 on field goals last season and made all 30 of his PATs. He previously kicked for Arizona State, so he’s missed just seven field goals in two seasons and no extra points. Brown kicked a 54-yarder against Oklahoma last season and Thursday had more than enough distance on his progression of kicks which ended with a 55-yarder. UC’s all-time record is 58 yards set almost 30 years ago by Jon Bacon at Miami’s Yager Stadium. Brown and the Bearcats will be there hoping to retrieve the Victory Bell lost last season in part to his late field goal attempt being blocked.
9. Fletchers always have the distance
Mason Fletcher in his final season is healthy and back as the punter and holder for the Bearcats. Despite injuries, he averaged 43.0 yards per kick last season after being a Ray Guy Award finalist in 2022 with a 46.2 average. The Fletcher family enjoys Cincinnati so much that his younger brother Max transferred from Arkansas and is now UC’s punter-in-waiting as a possible redshirt, despite averaging 46.5 yards last season for the Razorbacks. Going back to James Smith, this gives the Bearcats a decade of Australian punters.
Satterfield is a fan of the “hang time” he saw from Max early in the week.
“He out-punted his brother today,” Satterfield said Wednesday. “We have two really good ones. I’m excited about those guys. We talked about what we wanted in our special teams meeting, a 4.45 hang time and 45-yard punt. The very first punt that he (Max) had was 4.45. They’re awesome, really good punters. It’s good to have two guys that can really do it.”
10. The Bearcats are bigger, stronger and faster
GM Grant and Satterfield agreed that last year’s team didn’t look like the other Big 12 teams. The offseason work with Director of Football Performance Niko Palazeti was amped up and the recruiting department went in search of “dudes”.
Speed-wise UC had just one or two players that could surpass 22 miles per hour running in 2023. That figure is currently at 11. One of the fastest hauled down a pair of touchdowns Thursday and is just a freshman. Kale Woodburn is just 5-foot-10 and 165 pounds but can get behind the defense and run past them. Fellow Georgia freshman Dakrai Anderson is another burner
Corey Kiner may not be as fast as new running backs Evan Pryor, Chance Williams and others, but he’s definitely faster and has surpassed 21 miles per hour himself. Count the 1,047-yard rusher as one of those looking forward to going full-go at Higher Ground.
“Everybody can be good in shorts,” Kiner said. “We’ll see what it’s like next week with some shoulder pads on.”
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: 10 points to ponder as UC Bearcat football heads to Camp Higher Ground
