The sixth fall camp for the University of Cincinnati football team under head coach Luke Fickell is officially underway.
Sporting a black hooded sweatshirt with the words "IRON SHARPENS IRON" plastered prominently on it, and with a red whistle hanging from his neck, Fickell on Wednesday led the Bearcats through the first of 15 scheduled practices before the start of the fall semester.
For about two hours underneath the morning sun on the practice field at the Sheakley Athletics Center on UC's main campus, Fickell treated the practice like a warmup. Fickell said for him fall camp doesn't officially start until the Bearcats take the field at the Higher Ground Conference and Retreat Center in West Harrison, Indiana. That will happen Friday after the team takes Thursday off.
Wednesday's helmets-only practice was what Fickell called an opportunity for older players like senior linebacker Wil Huber, senior cornerback Arquon Bush, senior tight end Josh Whyle and senior wide receiver Tre Tucker to take the reins and lead the team through the final month of the summer before the Bearcats open the season Sept. 3 at Arkansas (3:30 p.m. on ESPN).
"We've lost a lot of really big-time guys, guys that have been here for a long time," Fickell said. "I say, 'Life without Desmond Ridder and Coby Bryant is different.' But I think that sometimes those guys (new leaders), in their own way, are really excited about proving who they are and what they've done. I think that them coming out here today set the tempo and the tone of how we do things. It's not a physical day ... but it's the mindset and the attitude of what leadership looks like. I think those guys have taken that to heart, and I think we've got the makings of some great leaders."
Quarterback competition
Sophomore Evan Prater and Senior Ben Bryant – splitting reps with the first-team offense – resumed their battle to replace Ridder as Cincinnati's starting quarterback.
Prater led the first-team unit through a two-minute drill with senior running back Charles McClelland by his side. Bryant led the second-team offense through the same drill with freshman Myles Montgomery taking over at running back.
Bryant threw two interceptions (one pass bounced off the hands of his intended target), as both quarterbacks worked to crack the "Blackcats" defense.
Fickell said he'd like to "have some things solidified (in the quarterback battle) in the first week-and-a-half" of camp, but said he's not worried about that competition as much as he is the one for the No. 1 running back spot.
"At quarterback, we're going to be in good shape," he said. "I mean, those guys have battled. We're going to have some great options. The tailback is one of those spots where I think that we've really got to put some pressure on some of these guys to see what they can do and see what they can handle."
Running back battle
While McClelland, Myles Montgomery and Ryan Montgomery will duke it out for the top spot in the offensive backfield, LSU transfer running back Corey Kiner figures to be another option for Cincinnati this season.
The former Roger Bacon High School standout took the field Wednesday for the first time in red and black. Fickell said he liked what he saw from the 2020 Ohio Mr. Football who will wear No. 2 for the Bearcats.
"He's going to have an opportunity to be the guy, just like Ryan Montgomery, just like Charles McClelland and Myles Montgomery," Fickell said. "We don't know (who will be the starter). All of those guys have been spare guys. We even took Ethan Wright out of that room. I think that's the position where we've got to find out a lot of things over the next 20 days."
The 'Wright' position
One player noticeably absent from the offensive backfield Wednesday was running back Ethan Wright. The 6-foot-1, 200-pound junior will switch positions this season and play safety for Co-Defensive Coordinators Mike Tressel and Colin Hitschler (safeties coach).
Fickell said with the depth at the running back position, he thinks "in the long run, it's (playing safety) going to be the best" for Wright.
"Obviously, No. 1, the most important thing is we've got to do for the team," Fickell said. "And there's no greater team guy than Ethan Wright. I mean, he's walking out last night and said, 'Coach, if you want me to do anything else, you just let me know. I'll do whatever you need for the team.'"
Fickell said Wright reminds him of former Bearcats safety Bryan Cook, a 2021 first-team All-American Athletic Conference selection and a second-round pick of the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2022 NFL Draft.
Replacing 2 All-American cornerbacks
With the departures of former Cincinnati cornerbacks Ahmad "Sauce" Gardner (unanimous 2021 AAC Defensive Player of the Year) and Coby Bryant (2021 Jim Thorpe Award winner) to the NFL, the Bearcats have two gaping holes to fill in the defensive backfield.
Senior cornerbacks Bush and Justin Harris opened fall camp as cornerbacks coach Kerry Coombs' top two options. While all of the cornerbacks rotated between the three corner positions (boundary, field and nickel), Bush and Harris led the first-team defense. Bush said he and Harris' chemistry is steadily improving, as Harris missed most of last season with a neck injury.
"We really just started playing with each other," Bush said. "We're just learning each other, figuring each other out. We're picking it through, but it's going to be good."
Tight end university
While there are question marks all over the field for the Bearcats, there are no questions at tight end. Whyle and graduate student Leonard Taylor are both back and ready to lead the Cincinnati offense.
First-year Offensive Coordinator Gino Guidugli is expected to use a lot of 12 personnel (one running back and two tight ends) offensive formations this season that will feature both Whyle and Taylor, two players who earned spots on the preseason watch list for the John Mackey Award, presented annually to the top tight end in college football.
"That was pretty cool," Whyle said of both players being on the list. "I think me and Lenny have a good relationship, healthy competition. We came in together and we've been buddies ever since. We're just pushing each other every day. There's no bad blood between us. I'm excited to do this final year with him."
Whyle said he and Taylor will be roommates again at Higher Ground.
"He snores like a damn cow," said Whyle.