4 things to take note of from the Bearcats in 2011-12

Listen up, freshman. You rookies will be relied on to continue the storied tradition of University of Cincinnati athletics. If you didn't keep up with UC's sports scene last year — or the past few years — it's time to catch up.

First lesson: football. Can you smell that? That is the smell of the best time of year, football season, which is right around the corner. Get your face paint ready, fire up those grills and buy tickets early because you don't want to be the one person in the group sweating it on gameday.

Prior to last season's dismal meltdown, the football team was the hottest athletic program on campus, but now the men's basketball team has reclaimed that title.

A new era was ushered in when former assistant to Bob Huggins, Mick Cronin, became the new head coach in 2006.

Cronin faced an uphill battle from day one, especially since the Bearcats were leaving Conference USA for the Big East — arguably the toughest conference in college basketball.

With this quick briefing, here are the four things to take note of in the upcoming year.

Can Cronin cope with the expectations?

Last season, Cronin took UC to the NCAA tournament for the first time in his five seasons at the helm.

This ended a five-year hiatus for a city that had grown accustomed to seeing UC's name called on Selection Sunday.

The Cincinnati alumnus took the Bearcats to the Big Dance after losing his top two scorers — including 2010 NBA second-round draft pick Lance Stephenson. The Big East coaches picked the Cats to finish 12th in the conference, basically giving Cronin a free pass to have an average season.

Cronin didn't get the message. He ignored what experts said about his team and instilled trust in his core group of players. The end result was the team's 11-7 Big East record — its best since joining the league. The Bearcats subsequently advanced to the third round of the NCAAs after dismantling Missouri in the second round.

This year's team has a completely contrasting identity. SI.com has UC ranked as high as No. 8 in its preseason poll.

Several times last season, UC relied on savvy veteran leadership, but, with the departure of six seniors, that could potentially change this season.

Seniors Dion Dixon and Yancy Gates — who typically shy away from vocal roles — will have to be more assertive on the court and in the locker room.

Cronin is sure to have a raised and possibly unfair bar this year, and only the results on the court will tell if he can meet it.

UC takes its first trip to SEC country since 1995

If there is a road trip you want to take to follow your Cincinnati Bearcats this school year, Knoxville should be your destination when the Bearcats football team takes on the Tennessee Volunteers Sept. 10.

According to SI.com, Tennessee is the best college football weekend experience in the nation. Who wouldn't want to be among more than 100,000 disappointed fans in Neyland Stadium if UC steals a win?

The game will be televised on ESPN2, giving the Bearcats a chance to replenish its image on the national scene. This is your first and best chance of the year to become a part of the Cincinnati sports tradition, freshman, so don't be lazy and waste it.

Butch Jones 2.0

Under previous head coach Brian Kelly, the Bearcats won back-to-back Big East Championships, garnered four straight bowl appearances, which included an undefeated 2009 regular season where the Bearcats rose as high as No. 3 in the Associated Press poll.

Since Kelly left, however, the Cats haven't been the same razzle-dazzle, explosive offense. Jones will need to find consistency on both sides of the ball to return to the postseason.

The Bearcats were top in the league in several offense statistical categories, and placed four skill players on all-conference teams. Their defense, however, was the laughing stock of the Big East. The poor defense coupled with the team's untimely turnovers, led to an unthinkable 4-8 2010 regular season.

What sports program will emerge this year?

Since UC joined the Big East in 2005, five programs have earned league hardware: volleyball, men's soccer, football, swimming and track and field.

Last year, the volleyball team won the Big East regular season title and advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament. Going into the 2011 season, however, the Bearcats will face adversity with the departure of seniors Annie Fesl and Stephanie Niemer — two players who are now in the program's record books.

The men's soccer team was the biggest surprise last year. The team had a second-place Big East finish after being picked to finish in the cellar in the preseason coaches' poll.

Bearcats junior hurdler Terrance Somerville ran one of his best seasons this past year, advancing to the final heat and being one of the eight finalists in the NCAA 110-meter hurdle Championship.

With Somerville back for another season, the Bearcat hurdler is sure to post even bigger numbers and will look to become the first UC track champion.

Tickel Your Fancy

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20 seconds from glory

Cincy alumnus races for final U.S. roster spot

Hunter Tickel | Sports Editor

One of the most accomplished athletes to ever set foot on the University of Cincinnati campus — swimmer Josh Schneider — may take the biggest step of his career Thursday.

The UC alumnus will compete in a swim-off with Olympic gold-medalist Cullen Jones for the final roster spot on the U.S. team for the 2011 FINA World Championships. The 50-meter freestyle will begin at 6:20 p.m. in downtown Charlotte.

The pair have been set to square off since August 2010 when they recorded identical times of 21.97 seconds at the 2010 Conco Philips National Championships.

Schneider dubbs this race as the biggest meet of the year and possibly his life.

"The emotion is pretty high because if I lose I don't get to go, but if I win, I get to represent my country," Schneider says.

Schneider's shot for a spot on the national team wasn't guaranteed after the National Championships seven months ago.

His time in the 50-meter competition was disqualified after his current coach at SwimMAC — Charlotte David Marsh — entered him into the 100-meter competition in addition to the 50-meter.

Schneider didn't show up to the 100-meter because it took place prior to the 50-meter freestyle. Regulations in swimming state that all times athletes record if they miss their first race do not count toward qualification.

A rule that Schneider says is for age-group swimmers, not those competing on the national stage.

"I had to get it appealed," Schneider says. "We got a lawyer involved calling in to sign off on the agreement that if the time was going to be counted, we would have to go into a swim-off,"

Schneider says it was a honest mistake and a coaching error.

Jones is the only person that stands between Schneider and a spot on the 2011 U.S. national team, and, coincidently, the two are training partners for SwimMAC — something that Schneider says raises the level of competition during practice.

At practice, the two don't talk about the race and understand that if either of them is to make it to the 2012 Olympics in London, they will have to knock the other off in the process.

"When we found out my time counted, we knew we were going to have to swim against each other," Schneider says. "That's just the way it is. Only two people can go and we both know that."

Schneider is a two-time medalist at the FINA World Championships. He won the bronze in 2010 in Dubai for the 50-meter short course, making him the current American record holder with a 20.88 time. Despite this accomplishment, Schneider is still crafting his game and remaining humble.

"I'm learning so much still, so I still have much to improve on if I'm going to be a contender for a medal at the Olympics," Schneider says. "I'm just defining everything. I'm never set in stone with my technique. If someone has a suggestion for how to get faster I always listen."

Schneider posted a repertoire of feats during his time at UC. He was a five-time all-American, seven-time Big East champion, named the conference Swimmer of the Year twice, broke 22 program-records and finished undefeated in the 50-meter his senior season.

"My time at UC gave me a foundation to further my career as a professional swimmer," he says.

Schneider says the most rewarding part of being a national champion is the recognition he provided for a UC program that hadn't had a national winner since 1946.

"I talked to a few recruits before I left and I've heard that a few of them came there because I swam there," Schneider says. "They were looking for a chance to be a breakout swimmer."

Prior to Schneider's graduation in March 2010, he said that he wanted to land endorsements of which he currently has three. He has also continued his preparation for the 2012 Olympics.

"When you get to the World Championships, especially this year, it's the dress rehearsal," Schneider says. "It gives you a honest perspective of where you are in the world rankings."

Kelce preserves tradition

Former Bearcat makes leap to pros

By Hunter Tickel | Sports Editor

It's the final day of the 2011 NFL draft. Exactly 190 players have been picked six rounds in, and yet, not a single Cincinnati Bearcat has been selected.

But that changes when an incoming call containing the first three digits 215 appears on Jason Kelce's phone in his home in Cleveland.

"I was sitting there and saw [on my phone] that the Eagles were coming up with a few picks," Kelce says. "I said, ‘Well, if I'm going to get picked, it's probably going to be right here.' I stared at my phone. I saw the Philadelphia area code pop up."

After speaking with head coach Andy Reid, Kelce joins the Eagles franchise Saturday.

The 6-foot-3-inch, 282-pound NFL draftee's frame was a shell of its current self when Kelce first set foot on the Cincinnati campus.

He weighed in at 215 pounds when he was recruited by current Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio in 2006. After redshirting his first season as a walk-on, Kelce was primed to play linebacker, but that changed with the hiring of current Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly.

"The coaching changes really helped me get where I am at today," Kelce says. "Kelly brought on strength coach Paul Longo. He was really the one that saw that I had the build and mentality of an offensive lineman. I made the switch and, from then on, he was building my body."

Kelce earned a scholarship in 2007 and began his journey to becoming a larger presence on the offensive line in the Big East. Initially, the Cleveland Heights, Ohio, native was not overwhelmed with the prospect of joining a BCS program without a roster spot.

"I was very confident," Kelce says. "I entered the UC program as a walk on, but in my head, I was better than everybody else was. I'm a little bit big-headed — I guess I try to be humble as much as I can."

In his first year of playing time he appeared in nine games as the offense averaged a program-best 36.3 points per game.

Kelce finished his college stint with 38 starts and was a two-time second team all-Big East selection. He led a unit that earned UC its first 1,000-yard rusher in nearly 10 years.

All of these feats helped pave the way for the highlight of his career.

"You work your whole life for one common goal: to make it to the NFL," Kelce said. "Once you are there, it all starts all over again. You are basically a freshman again. At least now I know the opportunity is there for me to make it."

Kelce already begins his transition from the collegiate level to the pros with skepticism among NFL experts. Kelce has been told that he lacks the physique to have an impact on the next level.

"I find it very hard to believe that I am undersized," Kelce says. "I have heard this from a lot of scouts. There are plenty of centers in the league that are my size or smaller that start in pro bowls."

He's right; five-time all-League center Jeff Saturday stands at 6 foot, 2 inches and 295 pounds — a similar frame to Kelce.

As the lone Bearcat selected this year, Kelce kept the school's five-year run of players drafted intact. Kelce is confident that the current players will carry on the school's success despite a 4-8 record last season.

"This program has completely transformed since I have been on campus," Kelce says. "I think it's a testament to show where the program is at now and that the UC program is here to stay."

Kelce will join former UC stars Brent Celek and Trent Cole in Philly. Celek has already reached out to the rookie, sending him his phone number through Twitter. The trio of former Queen City inhabitants will look to represent the city on the East Coast.

"It sucks that I am leaving Cincinnati, it really does," Kelce says. "I love this city and university. [But with] everything I have heard about Philadelphia — I can't help but be excited."

NFL draft bores once more

Tickel your Fancy

By Hunter Tickel | Sports Editor

The final Saturday in April has passed and, with it, the most over-publicized yearly sporting event.

The 76th NFL Draft was full of pregame hoopla and hype, but only delivered a typical tedious three days of picks.

Waiting 10 minutes between each first round selection is one of the most monotonous things I have ever done — especially in the midst of one of the most entertaining NHL and NBA playoffs in recent memory.

Four NHL first-round series went the distance to a game seven, and, in the NBA arena, No. 8 seed Memphis knocked off No. 1 San Antonio Friday.

How can calling off name after name compare to that?

The draft has become nearly as lacking in newsworthiness as National Signing Day, the first Wednesday of February when high school athletes commit to colleges.

What's next? Middle school signing day for pre-teens?

Unless you were a desperate fan of a hopeless franchise looking for the quarterback of the future — which this year's class didn't have — or you were hoping to see how well your college team was represented, you had no reason to watch.

I figured few University of Cincinnati players would be drafted, so I took the high road. Instead of wasting hours watching this overrated media event, I checked the draft boards Saturday to read up on everything I needed to know in less than 10 minutes.

If you are a Bearcats fan, former center Jason Kelce dropped to the sixth round as an undersized offensive lineman. The Philadelphia Eagles scooped him up with the 191st overall pick.

The Cincinnati Bengals nabbed former Georgia wideout A.J. Green with the No. 4 pick. Green has a lot of talent and potential, and, with Chad Ochocinco's future in limbo, Green is his likely replacement.

In the second round, Cincinnati answered the question on everyone's mind: Who will throw to Green? Former TCU star Andy Dalton was selected and will likely earn a starting role next year by default if Caron Palmer follows through with his retirement.

The top overall pick was Heisman Trophy-winner Cam Newton. He heads to Carolina needing to fine-tune his game, but will likely be thrust into a starting role.

Former Notre Dame star quarterback Jimmy Clausen, Carolina's second-round pick last year, was placed in a similar plight as he posted a 58.4 rating in 10 starts as a first-year starter in the league.

The Panthers have selected three quarterbacks in the past two drafts, including UC alumnus Tony Pike.

This year's draft provided fans with the first relevant football news since Super Bowl XLV, and, with the 2011 season still in jeopardy, it could be the only aspect of professional football happening this year.

When this season's draft began Thursday, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell took the podium and awkwardly smiled at the crowd as boos poured down on him from the discontent crowd.

The fans showered him with chants of, "Let them play," and "We want football."

My message to those in attendance: Shut up or don't participate in the draft. If you really want to see games, why are you partaking in an event run by the owners of the NFL while there is a work stoppage? You're just giving them more power.

The current NFL players casually asked players in this year's draft class to skip out on the festivities, but it would be unreasonable to expect these college stars to shy away from their celebrated passage to the pro ranks.

This year's draft had a little more intrigue with so little happening in the offseason, but now it's time for prodigious postseason hockey and basketball.

My first articles for The News Record as a Sports Editor

The Bearcat Bowl provided an early glimpse to the progress the defense has made following a poor season last year.

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I'm picking the Celtics to claim their 18th title after losing in game seven of the Finals last year.

Woods wired for 2011

Offseason training readies senior wideout

By Hunter Tickel | News Record

D.J. Woods jolted onto the Cincinnati football scene in stride Sept. 25, 2010, hauling in a career-best 171 yards in front of 58,253 fans at Paul Brown Stadium.

But the infamous second still fresh in Woods' mind was when he was swiped from behind at Oklahoma's nine-yard line and lost the ball after a career-long 69-yard catch. Woods ended the game with two giveaways.

"Those mistakes are going to live with me forever," The Strongsville, Ohio, native says. "I'm probably my biggest critic. I thought I had a great game, but, at the same time, I fumbled twice, and that's the only thing I remember from the game."

At the beginning of last season, Woods was prone to dropping the ball, losing five fumbles in the opening four games. But despite his early season troubles, Woods closed the season with better hands, and lost just one fumble in the final eight games.

"It all comes back to consistency," says UC head coach Butch Jones. "[Woods] is as talented of a player as we have. He's extremely intelligent [and] he plays fast. Now it's just about consistency on a day-to-day basis."

In response to Jones' request, the senior wideout has put in the time off the field to correct his ball security during the spring offseason.

"The first thing [Woods] needed to do was get bigger and stronger in the weight room," Jones said. "He has embraced that challenge. He's done a great job. I think he has had a very productive offseason."

Woods approaches his senior campaign as the top-returning receiver, having hauled in a team-best 898 yards and eight touchdowns during his junior season — accolades earning him second team all-Big East honors.

"Every year is a learning experience," Woods says. "I'm trying to get my technique down, know what I'm doing on the ball and off the ball. I feel like right now everything is coming together."

As a three-time letter winner, Woods has honed his execution in running routes is considerably from last season.

"I know how to read defenses. I know how to read defensive backs. I know what to do in certain situations," Woods says.

With the graduation of top receiver Armon Binns last season, Woods figures he'll see more of the ball but trusts in the assembly of Cincinnati's wideout core.

"Every receiver wants to get touches, but we have great receivers," Woods said. "We have a whole bunch of people who need the ball in their hands."

The Bearcats will return to Paul Brown Stadium — the site of where Woods' talents were made apparent — Saturday, Oct. 15, against Louisville and Saturday, Nov. 12, against West Virginia, and Woods is keen on playing in the spotlight of a pro setting and capacity crowd once again.

"It's a lot different because you're really playing at the next stage," Woods says. "You kind of feel like how the Cincinnati Bengals do. It's a great place to play."

Madness ends on ugly note

Tickel your Fancy
By Hunter Tickel | Senior Reporter

When Shelvin Mack missed his first two layups and had his 3-pointer swatted, I knew Butler was in for an ominous night.

The lack of execution and shot-making from Connecticut and Butler made for one of the most unbearable championship games in the history of college basketball.

The Bulldogs shot worse than 19 percent in a game that was an indecent climax to the five-month season and elimination of 343 other teams.

Only Harvard in 1946 had a worse performance from the floor in a tournament contest. Butler became the first team to hit just three 2-point baskets in a postseason game.

Even CBS analyst Charles Barkley, who had been ill-informed for the entirety of the Big Dance, was spot on when he compared Butler's six first-half buckets to being as ugly as the girls he dated in high school.

Butler's malaise spread quickly to UConn, which managed 19 opening-half points and actually trailed at the break. The 41 combined first-half points had the look of a scene cut from "Hoosiers" and Milan High School's championship in the '50s.

Kemba Walker, the Most Outstanding Player of the Tournament, missed his first five shots before finishing 5 for 19 overall. The South Bronx native showed on the biggest stage that he is a dubious shooter.

Are the Huskies really the best team the nation has to offer? A squad that went .500 in the Big East only has one future NBA player and four underclassmen starters?

Monday night was evidence of one of the most talent-starved college seasons in recent memory. Only two players from the tournament finale — Walker, a lottery to mid-round pick, and Matt Howard, a late second rounder — will be drafted.

Mack would be wise to stay in school for another year after leaving much to be desired with his shot selection and ability to run an offense.

In a watered-down year for college hoops, the two teams left standing set a record for highest combined seed total (11) in a title game. The pair had 18 losses between them, another record high.

The tournament experienced its first Final Four without a No. 1 or No. 2 seed, which portrayed the mediocrity and lack of quality players in power conference programs.

There was not one single dominant team. Ohio State was the closest to it and they folded in the Sweet 16.

The Big East may have been deep, placing a record 11 teams in March Madness, but, besides Walker, it has zero players capable of playing at the next level.

The league rose to the occasion when many power conferences were in shambles. Take Southern California, which lost in the First Four, out of the equation and the PAC 10 matched the Colonial Athletic Association with three berths.

The Bulldogs garner elite status for posting back-to-back national title game appearances. The past two years, they have more NCAA tournament wins than any other program with 10, but have failed to deliver the fatal blow.

Monday, the Bulldogs appeared unaccustomed to the national spotlight as UConn flexed its muscles with 10 blocked shots and made it look like boys against men.

Coaches can't win championships, and the Bulldogs appeared to have had no business competing for the hardware.

In a fitting display of the thin line between the haves and have-nots, Pittsburgh guard Gilbert Brown missed his second free throw with 1.4 seconds remaining that would have squashed Butler's run in the second round.

The college game needs a restructuring if it's to keep up with the ranks of the pros.

One-and-done players are depleting top-level programs and veteran minnows raiding the Final Four are becoming less infrequent with the decline in quality college basketball.

Bearcats sweep Hoyas

UC snaps its losing streak

Bearcats Set Sail With Pirates

Women's basketball preview vs. Seton Hall

UC Basketball: Back in buisness?

Tickel yer Fancy
By Hunter Tickel | Senior Reporter

Following Cincinnati's dominating, 20-point blowout of rival Xavier, the question I found myself begging the answer for was: is Bearcats basketball back?

Throughout the course of the past three seasons, UC has been in a college basketball abyss, failing to even reach the conversation for garnering an NCAA tournament berth since the departure of former head coach Bob Huggins.

Meanwhile, less than five miles from the UC campus, a blue empire was born — Xavier, Cincinnati's most-despised rival. The Musketeers have reached three consecutive Sweet 16's at the tournament and qualified for the big dance five consecutive years.

Times have been hard for the UC fan base to say the least; Thursday's win eased some of the pain.

The victory shed light on one distinctive advantage Cincinnati had throughout the Shootout: depth. This was typically an Achilles' heel for the Bearcats in recent seasons while head coach Mick Cronin was rebuilding the program.

"Like coach [Cronin] says, ‘We've got a lot of players on the bench that could be somewhere else and start,' " said senior forward Darnell Wilks. "With the talent we have coming off the bench, it's hard for other teams to compete with."

Xavier's Tu Holloway entered the rivalry game pacing Xavier with 21.3 points per game and drawing comparisons to one of college basketball's leading scorers.

"Holloway is playing as good as anybody in America not named Kemba Walker," Cronin said.

But after 2-of-13 shooting and a five-point effort against UC, he might be regarded as one of the biggest choke artists in college basketball.

Cincinnati wore him down with size, physicality and depth on defense. Guards Dion Dixon, Larry Davis and Sean Kilpatrick all have at least three inches on Holloway and took turns putting a hand in his face.

Sunday's 72-61 loss at No. 7 Villanova might elicit a blunt "no" to my opening question, but that's illogical to me.

The Bearcats fell behind by 21 points in the second half against the Wildcats while facing the fiercest full-court pressure they have seen to this point in the season. They also had to deal with poor officiating.

Despite all the adversity for the then-undefeated Bearcats, they managed to fight and claw their way back into the game, trimming the deficit to seven points before falling short.

"Nobody was giving up on each other," Wilks said. "We still have fight. There was a time in my freshman year when that lead could have kept building and building."

The current squad has an X factor that Cronin's teams have lacked up to this point in his five-year tenure: heart.

No Cincinnati team since the Huggins era has played with as much grit and dedication as this season's group.

The main factor for this is the veteran leadership the Bearcats have this season. With rebuilding the program like he has had to, Cronin has yet to have that before this year.

Six seniors and two juniors provide the glue for Cincinnati. Two of those seniors, Wilks and Davis, have humbly and willingly welcomed coming off the bench to provide a spark.

"Me and Larry, being seniors, we know our roles," Wilks said. "We accepted that. Personally, it really doesn't matter to me as long as I can come in and contribute mostly defensively and rebounding."

These Bearcats are the most unselfish team I've seen in years. They all know their duties and are content regardless of how much playing time they receive. They fully grasp just how scarce minutes are on this talented team.

Only the rigors of the upcoming daunting Big East schedule will determine if Cincinnati garners elite status in the nation's best and deepest conference.