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Sept. 11, 2006
The University of Cincinnati hopes that the adage, to be the best you have to play the best, rings true this Saturday when the Bearcats visit No. 1-ranked Ohio State. The 12:10 p.m. contest at Ohio Stadium will be televised regionally by ESPN Regional on both the BIG EAST and Big Ten syndicated packages.
Cincinnati fell from the unbeaten ranks after suffering a 33-15 setback to Pittsburgh in its BIG EAST Conference opener. The Bearcats are 1-1. The host Buckeyes firmed their grip on the top spot of the college football polls with a 24-7 win over previously No. 2 Texas last Saturday to up their record to 2-0.
Saturday's contest will be a homecoming of sorts for UC mentor Mark Dantonio. Dantonio served as defensive coordinator at Ohio State for three seasons, helping the Buckeyes to their 2002 national title. Three Cincinnati assistant coaches, running backs coach Tim Hinton, tight ends/tackles coach Mark Staten and linebackers coach Mike Tressel, also previously served at Ohio State. Tressel is the nephew of OSU head coach Jim Tressel.
The game will be Cincinnati's second-ever contest against a No. 1-ranked team. In 1986, UC lost to the No. 1-rated Miami Hurricanes at Nippert Stadium.
Dominick Goodman is quickly carving a niche as a top receiving and return threat. The Bearcat sophomore leads the BIG EAST and is third nationally in receptions per game (6.0), and is tops in the conference and No. 19 nationally in kickoff return average (26.0).
UC will be out to end a streak of nine straight losses to OSU.
Countdown to Kickoff
10 John Bowie made a career-high 10 tackles and returned a fumble 24 yards last week against Pittsburgh.
9 Quarterback Dustin Grutza has thrown a touchdown pass in eight of his last nine games.
8 Eight of the 22 projected starters for UC call Greater Cincinnati home.
7 In its history, Cincinnati has made seven previous trips to Columbus to face Ohio State on the gridiron.
6 Tight end Brent Celek led the team with six catches for a career-high 81 yards against Eastern Kentucky.
5 Cincinnati opened the home season with a win for the fifth straight season.
4 Four Bearcats have starting streaks of 13 games or more. Senior tight end Brent Celek boasts the longest, at 22 games.
3 The Bearcat defense is averaging three takeaways per game (3 interceptions vs. EKU; 3 fumble recoveries vs. Pittsburgh).
2 Defensive tackle Tony Carvitti registered two sacks against Eastern Kentucky, in his first career start.
1 The Bearcats are meeting the No. 1 team in America for the second time in program history.
Bearcats on the Air
Each University of Cincinnati football game is aired live on radio through the Clear Channel network. This week's game will air on WCKY-AM (1530 Homer). Dan Hoard is back for his seventh year as play-by-play voice. Former Bearcat players Jim Kelly, a wide receiver in the 1970s, and Deontey Kenner, a quarterback in the early 2000s, handle the analysis. Scott Springer hosts the pregame and postgame shows.
The Mark Dantonio Show
The 30-minute program is televised by WXIX-TV (FOX 19) on Friday nights at 12:30 a.m. and is aired on the Ohio News Network on Saturday's at 12:30 p.m. It is also available via podcast from the UC web site: GoBearcats.com.
Mark Dantonio Radio Show
The one-hour call-in show is broadcast live from 8-9 p.m. each Thursday from Rick's Tavern in Fairfield, Ohio. Head Coach Mark Dantonio and Jim Kelly enjoy an hour of college football talk on 700WLW, XM Radio channel 173 and 700wlw.com.
Interviewing Mark Dantonio
Head Coach Mark Dantonio and the entire UC coaching staff are available for interviews. On Tuesday and Wednesday, the availability will take place AFTER the practices, which are scheduled to start at 12 noon. On Thursday, the availability is before practice.
Interviewing Mark Dantonio by Appointment
Coach Dantonio and his coaching staff are available through Thursday of this week for one-on-one interviews. Contact Kelby Siler to schedule an interview with any of the Bearcat coaches.
Bearcat Player Interviews
University of Cincinnati student-athlete interviews can be conducted Sunday through Thursday. In-person interviews will be done either before or after practice Tuesday through Thursday. Please contact Kelby Siler or Tom Hathaway at least 24 hours in advance to schedule a player interview.
Bearcat Interviews by Appointment
Player interviews also can be conducted Sunday through Thursday by scheduling an interview through the Sports Communications Office. Home and/or mobile phone numbers of players are not available.
Ohio State Media Contact Information
OhioStateBuckeyes.com Office: 614-292-3101 Fax: 614-292-2624 Football Contact: Steve Snapp (snapp.1@osu.edu)
UC Takes on No. 1 Buckeyes
Cincinnati makes its first road trip of the season to take on the nation's No. 1 college football team on Saturday when the Bearcats visit Ohio State. Kickoff at Ohio Stadium is 12:10 p.m. The game will be televised by ESPN Regional and aired regionally on both the BIG EAST and Big Ten conference television packages.
The Bearcats enter the game smarting from last Friday's 33-15 loss to Pittsburgh in the BIG EAST opener for both teams. The loss gave UC a 1-1 record. Ohio State enters with a perfect 2-0 slate .
A Quick Look at the Bearcats
The Bearcats have gone away from their two-quarterback platoon in favor of naming Dustin Grutza the top signal caller after last week's game. Grutza threw for 189 yards on 21-of-35 pass completions, including a touchdown in the loss to Pittsburgh.
In the BIG EAST opener, John Bowie totaled 10 tackles and returned a fumble 24 yards for Cincinnati. Trevor Anderson lead the defensive front with six tackles, including one for loss and a fumble recovery.
After an interception against Eastern Kentucky, sophomore cornerback DeAngelo Smith fell on a muffed punt against Pitt.
Listed on the Butkus Award Watch List prior to the season, sophomore linebacker Corey Smith returned from an injury to make five stops against Pitt.
Wide receiver Dominick Goodman is taking the lead of the receiving corps. The former quarterback collected a career-high eight receptions against the Panthers.
Brian Steel boomed a career-long 64-yard punt on his first effort against Pitt. Steel added six more punts inside the opponents' 20 yard line and averaged 44.2 yards per punt last week.
UC vs. Ohio Programs
Cincinnati has been playing against teams from Ohio since 1888, when it faced Miami University in the first collegiate game in Ohio. That first game ended in a 0-0 tie. UC owns an all-time mark of 146-158-30 (.482) against teams from Ohio.
Ohio Bearcats
The Bearcats' roster lists 62 players from Ohio.
Cincinnati vs. Ohio State
Saturday's game will be the 15th meeting in football between Cincinnati and Ohio State. The two teams played 11 games between 1893 and 1931, then didn't face off again until 1999. They have played three times since 1999 and have games scheduled for Cincinnati in 2012 and in Columbus in 2014.
Ohio State holds a 12-2 lead in the series and brings a nine-game winning streak into Saturday's game. The Buckeyes scored 17 points in the final 17 and a half minutes to win the last meeting of the two teams, 27-6, in 2004. UC nearly upset the eventual national champions in 2002 in a game played at Paul Brown Stadium before falling, 23-19.
UC-OSU Ties
UC head coach Mark Dantonio, running backs coach Tim Hinton, tight ends/tackles tutor Mark Staten and linebackers coach Mike Tressel were all members of the Ohio State staff. Tressel is the son of Buckeyes running backs coach Dick Tressel and nephew of OSU head coach Jim Tressel. OSU quarterbacks coach Joe Daniels served on the Cincinnati staff for four seasons and was assistant head coach and offensive coordinator in 2000. UC quarterbacks coach Dave Warner worked at Kent State while OSU's Paul Haynes was a member of the team.
Bearcat Homecomings
Six Bearcats will be making a homecoming of sorts when the Bearcats visit Columbus to play Ohio State. Senior cornerback John Bowie played at Northland High. Linebacker Torry Cornett, cornerback DeAngelo Smith and running back Jacob Ramsey are Independence High alums. Quarterback David Wess was a standout at Whitehall High while and wide receiver Charley Howard played at Gahanna Lincoln.
Goodman Provides Good Target
Touted by the coaching staff throughout preseason camp, Dominick Goodman has quickly become the Bearcats' top receiving target. The Cincinnati product has caught 12 passes for 118 yards, including two for touchdown, in two games this year. He totaled 12 catches for 163 yards and two touchdowns in nine games in 2005. The 6-1, 200-pound sophomore leads the BIG EAST and is ranked 31st nationally in receptions per game (6.0).
Goodman, who was MVP of the Ohio Division I high school championship game in 2004 as a quarterback, recorded the first multiple receiving TD game since Hannibal Thomas tied the UC mark with three TD catches vs. Southern Miss. on Nov. 6, 2004 in the season opener. A threat as a kickoff returner, he leads the Bearcats in all-purpose yardage.
Bowie Leads Defense
Senior cornerback John Bowie tallied a career-high 10 tackles and 24-yard fumble return in the 33-15 setback against Pittsburgh. The reigning BIG EAST 100-meter dash champion, Bowie is tops on the team in tackles (16). He entered his final season with 18 career stops.
Defense Gives Rude Welcomes
Cincinnati served as an unfriendly host in each of its first two games. UC shutout its first two opponents for the first 88:57 of the 2006 season. The Bearcat defense yielded its first touchdown with 1:03 left before halftime in the loss to Pittsburgh. UC's defense limited Eastern Kentucky to just 250 yards of total offense and shutout the offense by a count of 31-0.
Stingy all night, through the first 30 minutes the UC defense yielded just 60 yards on 29 plays. The Bearcat defense was impressive in the first quarter, holding EKU to minus-11 yards of total offense.
Grutza Claims the Starting QB Duties
After sharing the spotlight with Nick Davila for the first two games, Dustin Grutza is set to be the starter under center at Ohio State. Grutza, who started all 11 games as a redshirt freshman, has completed 30-of-50 pass attempts (60 percent) for 350 yards. The sophomore is credited with two touchdowns and two interceptions.
Against Pittsburgh, Grutza completed 21-of-35 passes for 189 yards. In the first game of the year, he made good on 10-of-19 attempts for 121 yards and a touchdown.
Carvitti Makes the Most of Start vs. EKU
After recording one sack as a backup a year ago, senior Tony Carvitti notched two sacks in his first career start at defensive tackle in Saturday's win over Eastern Kentucky. The Cincinnati native's two sacks led the team. He set a career high with four tackles. The Bearcat defensive unit totaled four quarterback sacks and eight tackles for loss in the 31-0 triumph over EKU.
Hoke Sets New Highs on His Way to Leading the Defensive Front
Defensive end Anthony Hoke paced the Bearcat defense with a career-high seven tackles (four solo, three assists) against EKU. Hoke was credited with 2.5 tackles for loss and two quarterback hurries in the victory.
Continuing to Create Takeaways
Cincinnati's defense has registered three takeaways in each of its first two games and is ranked 11th nationally in turnover margin (+1.5). The defense recorded three fumble recoveries in the loss to Pittsburgh one week after collecting three interceptions against Eastern Kentucky. Sophomore DeAngelo Smith leads UC in takeaways. Smith picked off a pass vs. EKU and scooped up a muffed punt against Pitt.
Celek Totals Career Day
Tight end Brent Celek set a new career high with 81 receiving yards in the season opener vs. Eastern Kentucky. Celek, who made six catches, extended his streak of consecutive games with at least one reception to 13. The senior from Cincinnati recorded catches of 20 and 23 yards in the first 30 minutes. He made one catch for 10 yards in the second half.
Young Bearcats See First Action
A total of 13 Bearcats saw their first action in a college game in Cincinnati's season-opening victory over Eastern Kentucky. Four were first-year freshmen and seven were redshirt freshmen.
Two of the rookies were starters. Jeffrey Linkenbach and Marcus Waugh, both redshirt freshmen, started at left tackle and fullback.
Leg of Steel
Replacing Chet Ervin, who rewrote the UC record book for career punts and punting yardage over his four seasons was the task for Brian Steel. The junior has made good thus far. Steel has pinned the opposition inside the 20 yard line on nine punts and is averaging 41.1 yards per punt.
Steel averaged 44.2 yards per try against Pittsburgh. His 64-yard punt set a new career long. Against Eastern Kentucky, Steel boomed three punts inside the EKU 20. Five of his six punts required fair catches. The Colonels were unable to return a punt.
Nakamura Earns BIG EAST Honor
Haruki Nakamura was named to the BIG EAST Honor Roll for his performance in the Bearcats' season opening win over Eastern Kentucky. The 5-10, 185 junior, in his second season as the starting free safety, made six tackles and recorded an interception in the 31-0 shutout. He was UC's leading tackler in 2005 with 76.
Cincinnati Player Honors
Dominick Goodman, who achieved career highs with eight receptions for 80 yards, was named UC's Offensive Player of the Week for the Pittsburgh game. Trevor Anderson, who recorded six tackles and a tackle for loss from his defensive end position, was the Defensive Player of the Week. Punter Brian Steel was the Specialist of the Week.
There's No Place Like Home
Head Coach, Mark Dantonio's squads are 8-4 (.667) when playing at Nippert Stadium. After playing the first two games of the 2006 campaign at home, the Bearcats are 1-1 at Nippert this season. In 2004, Dantonio's club went 4-1 at home.
Lucky Seven Home Dates
Off to a 1-0 start at home, Cincinnati is hoping that playing seven home games is its lucky number. No strangers to playing seven home dates, UC has played seven or more home games 24 times in program history. In 1953, Sid Gillman's squad notched the only 7-0 home mark in UC history on its way to a 9-1 record. Most recently, in 2002 Cincinnati hosted seven games.
On This Date...
Cincinnati is 4-3 in games played on Sept. 16. In 1972, the Bearcats visited No. 2 Colorado and lost by a 56-14 margin. In 1995, UC shut out a favored Virginia Tech team, 16-0 in Blacksburg, Va. In 2000, UC dropped an overtime game at Wisconsin.
Captains
Seniors, tight end Brent Celek and strong safety Dominic Ross, will lead Cincinnati onto the field as teams captains throughout the 2006 campaign. Both are entering their third year as starters. They were elected by their teammates.
BIG EAST Champion
John Bowie already has a pair of BIG EAST Conference championships. The senior cornerback won the 100 meters and anchored UC's winning 4x100 relay at the league championship meet in June. He also placed third in the 200 meters. It was the first season in which he had competed in track since high school.
Quartet with Starting Strings
Four Bearcats own starting streaks of 12 games or more. Terrill Byrd, Brent Celek, Dustin Grutza and Haruki Nakamura started all 11 games in 2005, plus the 2006 opener.
Celek owns the longest streak of consecutive starts, having made 22 starts in-a-row. The tight end has not missed a start since the 24-19 win at East Carolina on Sept. 25, 2004.
Smith Named to Butkus List
Cincinnati sophomore Corey Smith has been named to the watch list for the 2006 Butkus Award. The award, initiated in 1985 by the Downtown Athletic Club of Orlando, Fla., annually honors the nation's top linebacker. Smith, a 6-1, 220-pound native of Salem, N.J., was the Bearcats' third-leading tackler from his outside linebacker position as a first-year freshman in 2005. He recorded 64 stops before suffering an injury which sidelined him for the final two games.
Other Bearcat Honors
Eight Bearcats earned were cited by various preseason football publications. Trevor Anderson, Mike Mickens (first team), Earnest Jackson, Haruki Nakamura (second team) and Freddie Lenix (third team) were named to the preseason All-BIG EAST team by Phil Steele's College Football. Brent Celek, Terrill Byrd, Lenix and Mickens were nationally ranked at their respective positions.
Celek Approaches TE Marks
Brent Celek is on his way to becoming Cincinnati's all-time leading receiver from the tight end position. Celek needs just 16 catches and 30 receiving yards to reach the career records for tight end. The senior has already established a new mark for touchdown catches by a TE with 11.
Bearcats with NFL Pedigrees
Cincinnati boasts four players on the roster who can lean on their fathers' backgrounds as NFL players.
Digger Bujnoch--Son of Glenn Bujnoch, Bengals, OG (1976-82)
Jon Carpenter--Son of Rob Carpenter, Oilers, Giants, Rams, RB (1977-86)
Dominick Goodman--Son of Don Goodman, Cardinals, RB (1983)
Reggie Fugett--Son of Jean Fugett, Cowboys, Redskins, TE (1972-79)
A Family Affair
Head Coach Mark Dantonio believes in family and team building, but this year's roster includes six Bearcats who followed in family footsteps to Nippert Stadium.
Brother Played at Cincinnati
Craig Carey-- Collin (QB, 2003-04)
Ben Guidugli-- Gino (QB, 2001-04)
Dominic Ross-- Derick (WR, 2002-05)
Father Played at Cincinnati
Dominick Goodman--Don (1982-83)
Jeff Reinstatler-- Tom (1959-61)
Grandfather Played at Cincinnati
Evan Sparks--Bob Frith (basketball, 1949-51)
Bearcats in the NFL
On the opening weekend of NFL action, the following 10 former Bearcats appeared on an NFL 53-man team roster:
Player Pos. Team Yr.
Blue Adams CB Buccaneers 4
Antonio Chatman WR Bengals 4
Trent Cole LB Eagles 2
Troy Evans LB Texans 5
Jason Fabini OT Cowboys 9
Tyjuan Hagler LB Colts 1
Artrell Hawkins CB Patriots 9
Antwan Peek DE Texans 4
Robert Tate CB Cardinals 8
Mike Wright DT Patriots 1
Historical Nippert Stadium
Nippert Stadium is the fifth-oldest NCAA Division I-A or I-AA stadium still in use. Opened in 1916, Nippert Stadium is preceeded in history by Harvard Stadium (1903), Georgia Tech's Bobby Dodd/Grant Field (1914), the Yale Bowl (1914) and Cornell's Schoellkopf Stadium (1915). Though the permanent stadium first came into use in 1916, UC has been playing on the site since 1902.
Richard E. Lindner Center and Varsity Village
The future arrived for the University of Cincinnati athletics program in May with the completion of the Richard E. Lindner Varsity Village. The term "village" aptly applies because the close location and interconnection of the facilities provides ease of use and access to services for all of the sports teams and their student-athletes, similar to that of a small town. There was nothing small about the vision for Varsity Village, a $105 million project.
The focal point of Varsity Village is the Richard E. Lindner Center. Located between Nippert Stadium and Fifth Third Arena, the new futuristic eight-story structure houses offices, locker rooms, meeting and support space for each of UC's teams. The emphasis of the Lindner Center programming is on the student-athlete. One entire floor of the building is devoted to the Nancy Hamant Academics Center, which contains study facilities for UC's 530 student-athletes, including over 80 computer stations.
Other features include Marge Schott Stadium for baseball, Ben and Dee Gettler Stadium for soccer and track, a new tennis center, and the Keating Aquatics Center. Nippert Stadium also benefitted with new seating, video boards and the FieldTurf playing surface.