1. Why fear the Bearcats? Defensive lineman Dontay Corleone is a decent place to start. Maybe one of the premier defensive linemen in the Big 12. It’s going to be tough for Scott Satterfield and Cincy I think, the offense lost a ton of talent and although Satterfield did an okay job at Louisville, he was probably on the hotseat and I don’t think the Cardinal fans were completely upset that he left. Defensively, I think things will be okay, partly because Corleone is a one-man wrecking crew, it’s keeping pace offensively that will be the problem.
2. The Best Jimmy’s and Joe’s. This is a list of players on preseason All-Big 12 teams. The defensive line with Corleone and Biggs along with Grzesiak at linebacker will help the transition to the Big 12.
QB Emory Jones
DL Dontay Corleone
DL Jowon Briggs
LB Daniel Grzesiak
DB Deshawn Pace
3. Transfer Report. Quarterback Emory Jones from Arizona State is a good start for Cincinnati and Satterfield also added Dee Wiggins, a receiver from Louisville, Donovan Ollie, a receiver from Washington State, and Joey Beljan, a tight end from Western Kentucky. On defense, Daniel Grzesiak is a pass-rush type of player from Utah Sate and DJ Taylor a safety from Arizona State.
4. Tough to Replace. Luke Fickell will be tough to replace for sure. He was a steadying hand and his move to Wisconsin was one that surprised me for sure. Receiver Tyler Scott was the most prominent name, catching 54 passes for 899 yards, 16 yards a catch, and 9 touchdowns. Fellow receiver Tre Tucker was also drafted, 52 catches, 672 yards, 12.92 yards a catch and 3 touchdowns. Adding to the receiving talent leaving is Josh Whyle who had 32 catches for 326 yards, 10.19 yards a catch, and 3 touchdowns. And the leading rusher from last year is also gone, Charles McClelland who had 146 carries, 849 yards, 5.82 yards a carry and 7 touchdowns. Linebacker Ivan Pace sort of did it all on defense for UC finishing last year with 136 tackles, 20.5 tackles for a loss, 10.0 sacks, 4 passes broken up, 7 quarterback hurries, and 2 forced fumbles. If you’re wondering why he didn’t get drafted, well, he measured 5’10”, but was listed as an even 6’0″ in college.
Previous 4 Things Preseason Previews: Baylor; BYU; UCF; Cincinnati; Houston; Iowa State; Kansas; Kansas State; Oklahoma; Oklahoma State; TCU; Texas; Texas Tech; West Virginia
Ed Note. This is what I worked on while on flights. I tried not to get too deep because that would be incredibly difficult to do this for 14 teams and I think most of us want a cursory idea of what opposing teams. I also found the idea of who is transferring in as more important than the freshmen arriving. That’s definitely changed over the course of years. I also thought that knowing who is being replaced is relevant more than most things.