Videos of post practice interviews with Brady Lichtenberg and Brendan Sorsby:

Hey all, we'll keep this updated, but wanted to pass on the known official visitors right now:
Login to view embedded media Keyshuan Tillery-- Sept. 13
Login to view embedded media Shon Abaev-- Oct. 2
Login to view embedded media Davion Hannah-- Oct. 12

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Guys, I caught up with one of UC's most recent visitors, OL Xavier Spikes, who visited UC on July 31 for the first day of fall camp and was offered a scholarship on the visit.
Login to view embedded media Spikes has been committed to Georgia State since June 12. That visit to UC was his first to Clifton and his first power four offer. I do think there's a good possibility he gets more bigger offers after a few games, when his film circulates. So, I think the Bearcats are getting in at a great time here.

On his UC visit, Spikes said he liked everything about Georgia State, which is why he committed, but with the Bearcats, "just taking everything I said about Georgia State and amplify it." He loved UC's facilities, the weight room, dorms, everything he saw. He told me he's spoken mostly with Cass Simmons, UC's director of recruiting, though a little bit with Zac Cardwell, who signed off on the offer. Spikes told me, "They seem like down to Earth and they mean what they say." It's a relationship that hasn't gotten super far, but enough to get him on a visit.

Spikes told me right now he's considering UC, Georgia State and Georgia Southern. It might seem odd that he's considering the other two, but he told me, "The only thing (Georgia) State and (Georgia) Southern have over (Cincinnati) is my family coming to the game." Spikes insists he doesn't have to stay close to home. I know Atlanta isn't too far away, but for Spikes, who's lived in that area his whole life, it is. So, that's the biggest hurdle right now, that if UC is all in here, it has to convince him that he won't be too far from home and that he'll be ok.

He doesn't have any visits set right now. But I'd imagine Spikes will get official visits set to all three this fall. He told me he doesn't have a decision timeline, but would like to decide at the end of the season. This could go into December, but I think unless he gets a lot of big offers, this will be done mid-fall. Bearcats are in the clear driver's seat right now. So, we'll see when they can get him on a visit.

Full story coming.

I had an INsider already, but wanted to follow up with a full story. Tillery will officially visit UC on Sept. 13. Also OVs to Wake Forest, Ohio State and Villanova. At this point, I'd say Tillery is the backup option for Reece, who is the top get right now.

Release from UC. Some good athletes in this group. Thompson is still in Paris competing for Team USA in the Olympics. Echikunwoke just won a silver medal in hammer throw:

Led by a trio Olympians who competed at the Paris Games, a pair of first-team All-America football stars, one of the greatest basketball scorers to don the Red and Black and arguably men’s soccer’s best player in school history, Cincinnati Athletics announced on Tuesday the 2024 James P. Kelly UC Athletics Hall of Fame Class.

The 2024 Class includes:

• Omar Cummings (men’s soccer)
• Annette Echikunwoke (track and field)
• Vanessa Gilles (women’s soccer)
• Mardy Gilyard (football)
• Sean Kilpatrick (men’s basketball)
• Jordan Thompson (volleyball)
• Mike Woods (football)

The 2024 Class will officially be inducted on Friday, Sept. 20 at Fifth Third Arena and recognized on Carson Field during the Houston versus Cincinnati football game on Saturday, Sept. 21.

Doors open at 7 p.m. with the program to follow. For the first time in recent years, the event will feature general admission for $25. VIP seating is $100 and will include a pre-event reception featuring two drink tickets and hors d'oeuvres.

Good update from our guy Rob Cassidy. He says UC, Ohio State and Providence are in the best position right now:

Post practice interview posted by UC football:
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He's got 14 offers in football, from schools like Tennessee, USC, Penn State and Oregon. But UC has offered him in basketball, his first in that sport. I'm told the Bearcats' football staff would allow him to play both sports. So the UC offer would then be for football, with more offers to give there.
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Bearcats traded one Ohio MAC team (Miami OH) for another in Bowling Green.
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Award goes to nation's best punter. Here's the release from UC:

University of Cincinnati senior punter Mason Fletcher has been named to the Ray Guy Award watch list, per an announcement from the Augusta Sports Council.

This is the second straight season that Fletcher has been placed on the award’s preseason watch list. The Melbourne, Australia native was a finalist for the award in 2022.

One of the top punters in the country, Fletcher received All-Big 12 accolades last season despite battling through injuries most of the year. He ranked fourth in the Big 12 in punting average (43.0) and was one of two punters in the league to not record a touchback. Fletcher downed 23 punts inside the opponent’s 20-yard line and seven inside the 10-yard line.

His best season came in 2022 when he was named an All-American by the Associated Press and received American Athletic Conference Special Teams Player of the Year honors. He ranked fourth in the country with a 46.2 average and had 14 punts of 50 or more yards.

Fletcher enters the season with a career punting average of 44.31, second all-time in program history behind Kevin Huber (45.47).

Thirty-three FBS punters were named to the 2024 Ray Guy Award preseason watch list. In mid-November, the Ray Guy Award committee will meet to select the ten semifinalists, who will be announced on November 15. A national body of Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) sports information directors, media representatives, and previous Ray Guy Award winners will then vote for the top three finalists to be announced on November 26. After the finalists are named, the voting body will cast ballots again to select the nation’s top punter. The winner will be announced live during The Home Depot College Football Awards airing on ESPN in December 2024.
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Hey guys, just following up on my previous INsider. Medlock said he's solid with UC. I do think this one will stick. But he'll likely get more offers this fall.

UC got some love tonight from ESPN's Pete Thamel. Crazy stat here:
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Guys, for the life of me, I'm not sure why UC is so behind, but today marked the first day college football programs could send out official scholarship offers for the 2025 class. A lot of programs sent them out at 12:01 last night. But tonight, is when all of the Bearcats' committed guys started posting offers. Rivals' national analysts even asked me why it took so long. I can't get anyone from UC to give me an answer. But here's what a few of the big ones look like:
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Another award released today and another pre-season accolade for the Bearcats. Below is the release from UC Athletics:

Redshirt senior offensive lineman Luke Kandra has been named to the Wuerffel Trophy watch List, the Wuerffel Foundation announced Thursday.

The Wuerffel Trophy is annually awarded to the college football player who best combines exemplary community service with leadership achievement on and off the field.

Kandra was also named a nominee for the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team last month. Eleven of the Wurffel Trophy watch list nominees will be named to the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team and will become Allstate Wuerffel Trophy semifinalists.

Kandra has volunteered his time at several local organizations, including Rockdale Elementary School, Ronald McDonald House, Impacting Tomorrow food pantry, and more.

A 2023 AP and Walter Camp All-American, Kandra ranked as the third-best Power Five guard (81.8) according to PFF while starting all 12 games and leading UC with 79 knockdowns in 2023. He returns as the country's top-graded P4 right guard in 2024 and will anchor an offensive line that returns all five starters. Cincinnati finished fifth nationally in rushing (217.1 ypg) in 2023 behind Kandra and running back Corey Kiner (1,047 yards), who also returns.

The 2024 Allstate Wuerffel Trophy finalists and recipient will be selected by an illustrious national voting committee, including a fan vote component, and announced on ESPN’s Home Depot College Football Awards Show on December 12th. The Allstate Wuerffel Trophy Presentation Gala will take place February 1, 2025, at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta.

Rivals is going back and looking at how it ranked the NFL's top players. A lot of hits, but a lot of misses, too. Just goes to show how much of a crapshoot rankings can be. Sauce Gardner was a low three-star in the 2019 class:

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Guys, I just got off the phone with one of UC's commits this summer, OL Jahari Medlock. He went from no ranking when he committed, to a high three-star in the new update. He camped with Rivals back in the spring, which I know was the biggest factor.
Login to view embedded media THE main reason I wanted to catch up was in June, Medlock told me he wasn't set with his commitment and still planned to officially visit Maryland last weekend. Good news is he told me that visit didn't happen. Medlock has told me all along that he trusts his coach to let him know if he thinks he should visit anywhere. Last month, they planned on the Maryland visit. Today, Medlock told me "We couldn't get around a time to go." And it doesn't sound like he wants to make up the visit. "If they wanna hit me up, that’s great. But I have my eyes on Cincinnati," he told me.

Medlock said he 's kept up regularly with the Bearcats coaches since he committed. He said he likes sending film to assistant coach Nic Cardwell, who then sends him video critique back. So, he's able to pick up quite a bit and the coaches have been very receptive.

I asked Medlock if he was gonna visit UC or anywhere anytime soon and he said he had not immediate plans. He's not completely shutting the door, but he's not actively looking, like it sounded like he was for a while. I think this one is about 90% UC. I do think there's a chance a bigger program, an SEC school could come in this fall. But right now, he and his coaches seemed focused on the Bearcats.

Full story coming.

Closed practice, but below is the release from UC Athletics:

The University of Cincinnati football team held its first practice of fall camp on Wednesday, exactly one month away from its first game of the 2024 season.

“Overall I think we had good energy on day one, the guys seem focused and intent on going out and practicing well,” head coach Scott Satterfield said. “I thought we threw the ball and caught the ball well, and I thought the defense was running around and making plays. For the first day I thought it was a really solid practice.”

Cincinnati’s first fall camp practice was held at Nippert Stadium, as will its next two practices this week. The team will then move most of the remaining “training camp” practices to Higher Ground for the 26th straight season.

“This early on we’re watching out for a look in their eyes and making sure they’re focused and intent on taking care of business,” Satterfield said. “I saw that today, there was good chatter out there which is what you want. You want these guys to help each other out, but at the same time have that competition and fire inside of them. It was fun to get out here and see the guys compete.”

Three All-Americans Return, ‘Godfather’ Update
UC returns a trio of All-Americans in 2024, with 2022 All-American Mason Fletcher and 2023 All-American Luke Kandra leading their respective position groups. Dontay “The Godfather” Corleone, a 2022 All-American, participated in non-contact drills as he works his way back from a medical issue that sidelined him earlier this summer. He is not cleared to return to full-contact action.

“He was out here today, and he was able to jump in a do a few things,” Satterfield said. “Obviously he’s only participating in what the trainers will allow him to do and he’ll work through that as we go through camp. We were excited to have him out here today. Even on the reps he’s not getting he’s out there doing a lot of coaching, so he’s staying involved mentally.”

Tinsley Looks to Lead Offensive Line
One of the top rushing teams in the nation last season, Cincinnati returns its entire starting offensive line and running back Corey Kiner for 2024. The offensive line paved the way for the Bearcats to average 217.1 rushing yards per game a year ago, which ranked fifth in the country. Redshirt senior offensive lineman Dartanyan Tinsley, who started all 12 games at left guard in 2023, is looking to be one of the leaders in the trenches for UC this season.

“For me, last year was about establishing who I am as a person and who I am as a player,” Tinsley said. “Now I’m ready to take on more of a vocal leadership role. Being around the guys and pushing them vocally, not just by example.”

The Bearcats open the 2024 season at home on Saturday, Aug. 31 vs. Towson.

Also coordinators Tyson Veidt and Brad Glenn, who spoke along with Satterfield during a press conference this morning. Video and brief story with it:

Also coordinators Tyson Veidt and Brad Glenn, who spoke along with Satterfield during a press conference this morning. Video and brief story with it:

Hey all, UC just wrapped up its pre-camp press conference. I'll link the video and have a brief story in a bit, but here's some of the main takeaways:

1) Dontay Corleone is still day to day. If you'll remember, UC announced last month he was out indefinitely, after doctors found blood clots in his lungs. And he was out a few weeks, but for about a month now, he's been working out with the team. He hasn't been fully cleared, but he's participating in more.
Login to view embedded media 2) Coach Scott Satterfield said DE transfer Mikah Coleman will miss the entire 2024 season due to a lower body injury. We don't know a ton of specifics, other than he suffered the injury over the summer in workouts. The plan is to get Coleman back in time for the 2025 season, though possibly next spring, depending on progression. He has two seasons of eligibility remaining. Satterfield said Eric Phillips, Rob Jackson and true freshman Marquaze Parker are all possibilities to shoulder the load a bit for Coleman.
Login to view embedded media 3) New faces. Satterfield brought up that the Bearcats have 47 players on scholarship since December, more than half the total amount allowed. He and defensive coordinator Tyson Veidt talked about the need for continuity. And while that has to develop naturally, Satterfield said they've worked to instill a winning culture and all be on the same page. That includes accountability, even in the off-season.
Login to view embedded media 4) Defending Nippert Stadium. While the Bearcats won one Big 12 game, against Houston, it was on the road. So, they've yet to win a conference home game. That obviously has to change. But Satterfield said that's a goal moving forward, to change that around and make Nippert Stadium a tough place to play. That means the team needs to win.
Login to view embedded media 5) RB Corey Kiner is without question the Bearcats' top returning offensive player. He was a pre-season watch list member for the Maxwell Award on Monday. So, it should come as no surprise that offensive coordinator Brad Glenn said UC wants to run the ball. But he talked about the guys behind Kiner being super important, since it can't be all Kiner, for multiple reasons. They need to keep him healthy and help his durability. Glenn said "we need to find that guy early on in camp." So, behind Kiner, nothing is solid, but Ohio State transfer Evan Pryor is looking like a good bet, along with Grambling State transfer Chance Williams.
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