UC Football: Five Most Impactful Players Ahead of 2023 Season

Cincinnati is starting a whole new era at Nippert Stadium.

CINCINNATI — UC football has fall camp coming up in roughly a month and there are plenty of impactful players sharpening their skills to get ready for a big 2023 season.

Several players must step up for UC to beat the odds and go .500 or better in 2023. Let's take a look at my five most important players heading into the program's inaugural Big 12 season.

Emory Jones - QB

The Bearcats need competent quarterback play to maximize the impact of a veteran-laden defense. Jones is obviously going to play a big part in that.

His quick acclimation to a skillset-friendly system is a massive bellwether for how well this offense can ultimately play in Scott Satterfield's first season. Jones was not great in his short time at Arizona State.

He started eight games throughout the 2022 season, amassing 1,530 passing yards and 7 touchdowns on 7.7 yards per attempt and a 62.5% completion rate. His receivers didn't do him many favors as a Sun Devil (9.4% drop rate, the highest of his college career), but Jones still didn't do enough to keep the job for a full season on a 3-9 ASU team.

Jones has thrived in his career at Florida (80.6 overall PFF grade on 386 dropbacks in 2021). Getting back to near that level of play will be crucial for UC's 2023 goals.

Interior Offensive Line

Jones's success should have plenty to do with protection from his offensive line and the rushing production the zone scheme can produce.

Tackle is tracking as the weaker part of UC's offensive line making the interior strength from Trevor Radosevich, Gaven Gerhardt, Luke Kandra, Mao Glynn, and Dartanyan Tinsley even more important.

Kandra (71.9 overall PFF grade in 2022) is coming off the strongest season among that crew and should be a lynchpin of the offense, although his injury status is one to monitor early in camp after he missed part of the spring action.

Gerhardt (50.8 overall grade) and Radosevich (72.2 grade in Ivy League) have a little bit more to prove, especially as both take a step up in competition. All three are more consistent at run blocking than pass blocking. That's important in the run-heavy scheme Cincinnati employs, but it can't be 70-75% run all season for obvious reasons.

The O-Line's continual growth in pass protection is a big storyline to monitor during fall camp.

Xzavier Henderson - WR

Can UC's quick reset at wide receiver work right away in 2023?

Henderson should have a lot to do with that answer as a long outside weapon at 6-foot-4, 180 pounds. In 2021, Henderson caught 26 passes for 277 yards and 2 touchdowns from Jones while at Florida.

That rapport should spark a quick rise up a depth chart, with Dee Wiggins and Donovan Ollie vying for outside snaps as well. Henderson has historically been more durable than Wiggins (three missed games in the past two seasons) and just posted a top-25 SEC receiving season in 2022(67.1 PFF grade ranked 22nd among 33 SEC wide receivers with at least 50 targets).

Henderson brings some lacking athleticism to a Cincinnati team that needs a No. 1 option to rise up at the very least before Oklahoma kicks off the 2023 Big 12 slate.

Dontay Corleone - DT

PFF's highest-graded defensive player last season can't be expected to repeat a 93.8 overall grade, but he should take a slight step up in overall production.

A bit more chaos and unpredictability from Brian Brown's defensive playsheet could open up more TFL and sack opportunities for Corleone. The incoming redshirt sophomore posted 45 tackles, 5.5 TFLs, 3 sacks, 2 fumble recoveries, and 2 forced fumbles on his way to third-team All-American honors.

His growth in strength and mental acumen will be imperative if Cincinnati's defense wants to drive winning like it's expected to this coming season. Corleone wrecking the middle just makes everything easier on the next two levels of the defense. Constant double teams leave another one of Cincinnati's strong front-seven pieces paths to havoc, which speeds up run and pass plays, creating more turnovers and short fields for the offense.

Around the wheel, we go. Quick interior action opens up a lot for defenses and Corleone is at the center of that.

Deshawn Pace - LB

Pace is a key cog on that wheel and one that could definitely return to his 2021 turnover heights. The incoming senior was solid but not as great in 2022, ranking fifth on the Bearcats roster with 62 tackles. He added 5 TFLs, 1 sack, 1 fumble recovery, and 1 blocked kick.

Pace could be the star of this defense (pun intended) as he moves to that position in Bryan Brown's unit. Pace really stood out to me throughout the spring as a player oozing with potential in a new role. He will be a versatile piece on the chess board that can move all over and make plays in a variety of roles.

It felt like every practice he either had an interception pass breakup or both. Expect him to create more interceptions than the lone one he posted in 2022 after having 4 in 2021. He is tailor-made for the star position at 6-foot-2, 210 pounds and can be another disguised option in pass coverage with his length and veteran savvy.

I'm anticipating a big season from Pace as he builds a profile to join his brother in the NFL next year.

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