Playing freshmen in 2024 may help Cincinnati Bearcats football in 2025

Cincinnati Bearcats football defense should mature in 2025

Cincinnati Bearcats football defense should mature in 2025

As his young team was struggling against Penn State on Sept. 10, 2005, then-Cincinnati Bearcats football coach Mark Dantonio looked out on the field and saw numerous freshmen or redshirt freshmen on the grass at Beaver Stadium.

A look at the game tape later showed his eyes didn’t deceive him as Dantonio tried to replenish his roster from the 2004 season when he finished 7-5 with a Fort Worth Bowl win. Offensive players that started or played in that game included redshirt freshmen Dustin Grutza, Bradley Glatthaar and Earnest Jackson and freshmen Dominick Goodman, Marshwan (Mardy) Gilyard and Connor Barwin (who would later switch to defense under Brian Kelly).

The defense featured redshirt freshmen Haruki Nakamura and Anthony Hoke plus true freshmen Trevor Anderson, Terrill Byrd, Mike Mickens and Corey Smith.

Playing that many youngsters against a Big Ten powerhouse is probably not a recipe for success. But, a year later UC finished 8-5 including knocking off No. 7 Rutgers, which came to Nippert Stadium unbeaten, 30-11. The win would catapult Dantonio to Michigan State and the College Football Hall of Fame and bring Brian Kelly from Central Michigan to Cincinnati to begin an unprecedented three-year run of success.

Of those young players, Nakamura was a sixth-round pick of the Ravens, Barwin a second-round pick of the Texans, Gilyard a fourth-round pick of the Rams and Mickens was a seventh-round pick of the Cowboys. Also from that roster, redshirt freshman Trevor Canfield was a seventh-round pick of the Cardinals, redshirt freshman DeAngelo Smith a fifth-round pick of the Cowboys, and freshman Jeff Linkenbach went undrafted but played from 2010-2016 in the NFL.

Can lightning strike twice with Cincinnati…

Source link : https://www.cincinnati.com/story/sports/college/university-of-cincinnati/2025/03/21/playing-freshmen-in-2024-may-help-cincinnati-bearcats-football-in-2025-big-12-uc-spring-game/82473707007/

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Publish date : 2025-03-21 14:53:00

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