TicketsFootball season arrived. And there was much rejoicing.
That's right, UC opens fall practice today at 3 p.m. The full squad of 105 reported for a collection of meetings and meals last night at the Lindner Center.
I popped up there for a little bit and was able to catch up with Butch Jones and a few of the new faces on the team.
Plenty to be excited about. The team has a new catering deal with Cincinnati State Culinary Institute and the setup will be a nice upgrade for the Cats. They do it right over there. Apparently, Akise Teague and Jameel Poteat have been pushing Isaiah Pead in some of the speed and agility drills. Of course, after a few losses to Teague, Pead woudn't have it and now hasn't lost one in three weeks.
The most important development for this year's fall camp, however, is the trend of strong beard growth on the team.
Some were unkempt, others leprechauned and another a miniature version of Brett Keisel.
Now, I love sports. There are few things I love discussing more than sports. Yet, wild facial hair is one of them. Trust me, this blog will be the spot to find all your UC beard needs over the next three weeks of camp.
If any of the beard-less players develop jealousy at the rich, full lives of their bearded brethren, they could always call Baron Davis for help.
Let's eat...
--- WR D.J. Woods was named to the Paul Hornung Watch List for the most versatile player in college football.
Woods finished 15th in the country last year in all-purpose yards. He averaged 155 ypg. He was ranked sixth among those at AQ schools.
For him, the biggest concern will be taking care of the ball. As long as he avoids the turnovers in those situations, he'll again be one of the best return men in the conference.
--- Seeing Dan Hoard's blog back brings a smile to my face. Here he is chatting with JK Schaffer from BE Media Days.
JK to critics: "Bring it."
--- Eagles.com talks about Jason Kelce running with the ones some at Philly camp. Kelce has been among the biggest surprises at their camp, though, it's no surprise to anybody that followed his career at UC.
Still, the amount of looks he's received as a starter even left Kelce taken back a bit.
"I'm surprised that I was thrown into the mix as soon as I was, but I'm taking it head on," Kelce said. "It's been a very, very aggressive learning curve for the first couple of practices so just getting used to the speed of the game, the calls, the cadence, everything - it's been pretty mind-boggling for the first few practices."
--- Here's the report-to-camp story from Bill Koch. Covers all the basics for you slackers that don't pay attention during the offseason.
--- I'm working on a piece on Butch Jones and why his recruiting techniques work as his first true class arrives on campus. That should be up in the near future.
I talked to Jameel Poteat for the story. If you don't know his recruitment story, he decommitted from Pitt and chose UC. He was ranked as one of the top 15 RB recruit in the country by Rivals.
He says he still gets some mail from Pitt fans and heard all about how they believe he made the wrong decision. Remember, Poteat is from the Pittsburgh area.
It will be fun talking to Jameel the week of the Pitt game. Needless to say, he's got that one circled on the calendar.
"Can't wait," he snapped off, in what felt like a calm version of a Bart Scott impression. "I have teammates that play for Pitt. All the fans telling me I made the wrong decision. I can't wait."
--- Andrea Adelson tackles the concept of the TCU expansion increasing the Big East's chances of playing for a national championship. Long story short, not really. Any team going undefeated will do that. UC didn't make it in 2009 because Alabama and Texas didn't lose a game. There are only a handful of teams in the country that could even make an argument for inclusion over either of those programs in a year they go undefeated.
As I said last week, as long as the league as a whole rebounds from the awful non-conference season against other AQs, then its image and argument for inclusion in BCS games will be fine.
And adding TCU certainly won't hurt that.
--- Syracuse's WR corps took a hit recently.
--- The Enquirer catches up with Darnell Wilks as the dunk machine begins his career with the Globetrotters.
--- I feel for Mick Cronin and his staff. Having so much of your career depend on the loyalty habits of teenagers must be mind-numbing. Luke Winn at SI put together a fantastic investigative piece into the increased "flightiness" among top HS recruits.
--- Jeff Goodman put together an offseason overview of all the teams in the Big East.
--- Bearcats in the pros are on fire right now. You have Jason Kelce pushing to start in Philly. Omar Cummings scored this nice goal for the Colorado Rapids. Tony Campana had the biggest game of his young career against the Reds on Friday. Campana hit an Inside the Park HR, the first at Wrigley Field since 2001. The ball didn't even hit the cutoff man by the time he made it into home.
Here's Campana talking to reporters after the game.
Campana's UC buddies were blowing up his phone after the game, according to this piece in the Chicago Tribune.
Some randomness....
--- Real Madrid played against 109 children in China this weekend -- at once. It's wild video and a perfect visual representation of how many people view the country.
--- The police in Alabama faked a scenario where Deadbeat Parents owing child support are given a letter saying they won free tickets to the Alabama-Auburn game. When they show up for them, the cops arrest them. The demeanor change is priceless.
--- The FX show Wilfred is growing on me. And it will continue too since the channel renewed it for another year.
--- I'll be headed down to practice later today. Look for plenty more info from myself and the rest of the clan on GoBearcats as fall practice gets underway. On that note, Thin Lizzy only seems fitting. Have a good one.
That's right, UC opens fall practice today at 3 p.m. The full squad of 105 reported for a collection of meetings and meals last night at the Lindner Center.
I popped up there for a little bit and was able to catch up with Butch Jones and a few of the new faces on the team.
Plenty to be excited about. The team has a new catering deal with Cincinnati State Culinary Institute and the setup will be a nice upgrade for the Cats. They do it right over there. Apparently, Akise Teague and Jameel Poteat have been pushing Isaiah Pead in some of the speed and agility drills. Of course, after a few losses to Teague, Pead woudn't have it and now hasn't lost one in three weeks.
The most important development for this year's fall camp, however, is the trend of strong beard growth on the team.
Some were unkempt, others leprechauned and another a miniature version of Brett Keisel.
Now, I love sports. There are few things I love discussing more than sports. Yet, wild facial hair is one of them. Trust me, this blog will be the spot to find all your UC beard needs over the next three weeks of camp.
If any of the beard-less players develop jealousy at the rich, full lives of their bearded brethren, they could always call Baron Davis for help.
Let's eat...
--- WR D.J. Woods was named to the Paul Hornung Watch List for the most versatile player in college football.
Woods finished 15th in the country last year in all-purpose yards. He averaged 155 ypg. He was ranked sixth among those at AQ schools.
He was one of the most productive players in the league a year ago, leading the BE in all-purpose yards. He ranked in the Top-10 in the conference in receptions per game (3rd/4.8), receiving yards per game (2nd/74.8), punt return average (6th/7.7) and kick return average (7th/22.8). His 10 touchdowns (eight receiving, two rushing) tied for fourth in the BE.
I haven't received confirmation from Kerry Coombs on this, but I'd fully expect him to be returning punts and kickoffs once again. Likely some of the exciting younger players will receive a look there this fall, but Woods' proven playmaking should put him over the top.For him, the biggest concern will be taking care of the ball. As long as he avoids the turnovers in those situations, he'll again be one of the best return men in the conference.
--- Seeing Dan Hoard's blog back brings a smile to my face. Here he is chatting with JK Schaffer from BE Media Days.
JK to critics: "Bring it."
--- Eagles.com talks about Jason Kelce running with the ones some at Philly camp. Kelce has been among the biggest surprises at their camp, though, it's no surprise to anybody that followed his career at UC.
Still, the amount of looks he's received as a starter even left Kelce taken back a bit.
"I'm surprised that I was thrown into the mix as soon as I was, but I'm taking it head on," Kelce said. "It's been a very, very aggressive learning curve for the first couple of practices so just getting used to the speed of the game, the calls, the cadence, everything - it's been pretty mind-boggling for the first few practices."
--- Here's the report-to-camp story from Bill Koch. Covers all the basics for you slackers that don't pay attention during the offseason.
--- I'm working on a piece on Butch Jones and why his recruiting techniques work as his first true class arrives on campus. That should be up in the near future.
I talked to Jameel Poteat for the story. If you don't know his recruitment story, he decommitted from Pitt and chose UC. He was ranked as one of the top 15 RB recruit in the country by Rivals.
He says he still gets some mail from Pitt fans and heard all about how they believe he made the wrong decision. Remember, Poteat is from the Pittsburgh area.
It will be fun talking to Jameel the week of the Pitt game. Needless to say, he's got that one circled on the calendar.
"Can't wait," he snapped off, in what felt like a calm version of a Bart Scott impression. "I have teammates that play for Pitt. All the fans telling me I made the wrong decision. I can't wait."
--- Andrea Adelson tackles the concept of the TCU expansion increasing the Big East's chances of playing for a national championship. Long story short, not really. Any team going undefeated will do that. UC didn't make it in 2009 because Alabama and Texas didn't lose a game. There are only a handful of teams in the country that could even make an argument for inclusion over either of those programs in a year they go undefeated.
As I said last week, as long as the league as a whole rebounds from the awful non-conference season against other AQs, then its image and argument for inclusion in BCS games will be fine.
And adding TCU certainly won't hurt that.
--- Syracuse's WR corps took a hit recently.
--- The Enquirer catches up with Darnell Wilks as the dunk machine begins his career with the Globetrotters.
--- I feel for Mick Cronin and his staff. Having so much of your career depend on the loyalty habits of teenagers must be mind-numbing. Luke Winn at SI put together a fantastic investigative piece into the increased "flightiness" among top HS recruits.
--- Jeff Goodman put together an offseason overview of all the teams in the Big East.
--- Bearcats in the pros are on fire right now. You have Jason Kelce pushing to start in Philly. Omar Cummings scored this nice goal for the Colorado Rapids. Tony Campana had the biggest game of his young career against the Reds on Friday. Campana hit an Inside the Park HR, the first at Wrigley Field since 2001. The ball didn't even hit the cutoff man by the time he made it into home.
Here's Campana talking to reporters after the game.
Campana's UC buddies were blowing up his phone after the game, according to this piece in the Chicago Tribune.
Some randomness....
--- Real Madrid played against 109 children in China this weekend -- at once. It's wild video and a perfect visual representation of how many people view the country.
--- The police in Alabama faked a scenario where Deadbeat Parents owing child support are given a letter saying they won free tickets to the Alabama-Auburn game. When they show up for them, the cops arrest them. The demeanor change is priceless.
--- The FX show Wilfred is growing on me. And it will continue too since the channel renewed it for another year.
--- I'll be headed down to practice later today. Look for plenty more info from myself and the rest of the clan on GoBearcats as fall practice gets underway. On that note, Thin Lizzy only seems fitting. Have a good one.