Cincinnati Football Transfers Stamp Reasons Why They Picked The Bearcats

Cincinnati is hopping to make a bowl game for the first time since 2022 this coming season.
Cincinnati Bearcats player lifts his helmet after the Birmingham Bowl between Cincinnati Bearcats and Boston College Eagles on Thursday, Jan. 2, 2020, at Legion Field in Birmingham, Ala. Cincinnati Bearcats wont 38-6.

Birmingham Bowl
Cincinnati Bearcats player lifts his helmet after the Birmingham Bowl between Cincinnati Bearcats and Boston College Eagles on Thursday, Jan. 2, 2020, at Legion Field in Birmingham, Ala. Cincinnati Bearcats wont 38-6. Birmingham Bowl / Albert Cesare / USA TODAY NETWORK
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CINCINNATI — Cincinnati had four new football transfers address the media on Thursday afternoon, including guard Taran Tyo, cornerback Matthew McDoom, safety Christian Harrison, and running back Tawee Walker.

They echoed a loving atmosphere that drew them into the program.

"It was the love really," McDoom said about his recruitment. "It was just showing a tremendous amount of love. Felt like they really wanted me, you know. So when I came on the visit, all that love they were showing on social, not social media, on the phone, really, they just poured it out right when I got here. So that really sold it."

The former Coastal Carolina cornerback has a strong chance to be Cincinnati's top transfer this cycle and lead cornerback next season.

Culture came up a lot in the extended comments from players.

"It was just all the love that coaches was showing me," Harrison noted as he came over from the SEC following a few starts at Tennessee. "And then once I got up here, you know, they kept showing me love. And I just realized how good the culture is here and how hard we're gonna work, so I was like, 'I'm all in.' So, that's why I came here."

Walker has already been in Clifton, playing Cincinnati as a part of the 2023 Oklahoma squad. Now he has a newfound fifth year of eligibility he's trying to maximize. Tyo has been here before as well. The former Ball State mauler did a recruiting camp at Cincinnati in high school, and now the story's come full circle.

"In visits, always look for that family culture," Tyo noted. "And when I came here, I felt it through all the coaching, all the coaching staff and the players I met, (Brendan) Sorsby, Gavin (Gerhardt), those guys I already consider them family and brothers to me because those guys helped me out so much already. And that kind of culture, you know, really intrigued me to come here."

The culture got reset last season and now this fresh batch of names can help it grow more and possibly flourish into a bowl-eligible outfit.

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Russ Heltman
RUSS HELTMAN

Russ Heltman is a contributor for AllBearcats and AllBengals. He is the morning host and producer for 89.3 WMKV in Cincinnati, OH. Russ can be found on Twitter: @RussHeltman11 or you can reach him by email at Heltmandm@yahoo.com.