The unofficial online home for fans of the University of Cincinnati Bearcats. Part of Collegiate Sports Nation (CSN).

This was posted in another thread, but I figured it warranted it's own so everyone can see the news:

Quote:Cincinnati’s Desmond Ridder returning to school, putting Bearcats back in CFP picture
Pete Thamel

Fri, January 8, 2021, 11:42 AM EST·6 min read

Cincinnati quarterback Desmond Ridder will return to school for his senior season, he told Yahoo Sports on Friday, setting the stage for the Bearcats to again position themselves in the College Football Playoff conversation.

Ridder will be the winningest quarterback in college football in 2021, as he’s 30-5 as a starter after leading Cincinnati to an American Athletic Conference title, undefeated regular season and bid in the Peach Bowl this season.

“One of my main goals when I came to Cincinnati was to leave this place better than when I got here,” Ridder said. “This was obviously a tough decision, but I really have a chance to do that.”

Ridder’s decision has a two-fold impact, as he gets a chance to help Cincinnati compete in the highest levels of the sport and he can also help his own NFL draft stock and emerge as one of the top-tier quarterbacks in the 2022 NFL draft.

The Bearcats expect to return 15 starters — eight on offense and seven on defense — and should be near the top 10 in the preseason. Ridder promises to be one of the faces of the sport next season, as Cincinnati has marquee games at Indiana on Sept. 18 and at Notre Dame on Oct. 2.

Considering the College Football Playoff committee’s lack of respect for Cincinnati this season — dropping them from No. 7 down to No. 9 without losing — there’s still skepticism that the committee would allow them in the CFP with another undefeated regular season.

Cincinnati coach Luke Fickell said there’s “no doubt” Ridder’s return should merit Cincinnati for consideration for the preseason top 10. Cincinnati started last season No. 20 in the Associated Press preseason poll, and next year’s early rankings could provide a barometer for how seriously the CFP committee takes the Bearcats.

“He becomes the face of a program that’s continuing to climb,” Fickell told Yahoo Sports. “Obviously, I don’t want to say we should be better. But we could be on paper. We’ve got the nucleus to have a chance to be really good.”

Ridder, who is 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds, finished the 2020 season with 19 touchdown passes, 12 rushing touchdowns and established himself as one of the country’s most dangerous and versatile quarterbacks. He threw for 2,296 yards, completed 66.2% of his passes and threw six interceptions. He rushed for 592 yards, averaging 6.0 yards per carry.

Ridder will enter next year as a fifth-year senior and four-year starter, but acknowledged that there are areas he can improve. He said the feedback he received from the NFL projected him somewhere between a fourth- and sixth-round pick. He said he plans to work with quarterback trainer Jordan Palmer in the offseason to refine his game and also wants to pack 10 more pounds of muscle on his frame working with Cincinnati strength coach Brady Collins.

“I want to work on my body weight, accuracy, deep ball, leadership and my off-field development,” Ridder said. “Being in the film room and with the coaches, being a professional but in a college setting will help me become a better pro at the NFL level if I take steps forward now.”

While it’s early to project the quarterback class of the 2022 draft, the top names are expected to be UNC’s Sam Howell, Arizona State’s Jayden Daniels, USC’s Kedon Slovis, Georgia’s JT Daniels and Iowa State’s Brock Purdy. Ridder can join them with improvement, as one NFL scout told Yahoo Sports that Ridder could end up in the first two rounds with a “big jump” in play.

“He made a smart decision, as he’s got a lot of ability but he’s not a finished product,” the NFL scout said. “He’s very athletic with a lot of tools, but he needs to improve his accuracy, his anticipation and develop his body to be NFL ready. He doesn’t have an NFL body right now.”

What Ridder will have next season is the biggest spotlight of any player in the Group of Five, and he’ll enter the season as one of the sport’s household names. Against Georgia in the Peach Bowl, Ridder completed 24-of-37 passes for 206 yards and two touchdowns, capping a six-game finishing kick that Fickell said should put him with the elite players in the sport.

“I do think going into the season that he should be in the Heisman conversation,” Fickell said. “With his numbers and his last six games, how could you not put this guy in the conversation?”

What Fickell sounded most excited about was the kinetic impact of Ridder’s return on the rest of the program, as he predicted it’ll motivate the other players and staff to be at their best.

“As he makes a choice to come back after what he’s done, we have to find a way to raise our levels and peoples’ levels around us. He’s going to be driven to take it to the next level, and it’ll be motivating for all of us.”

Ridder has seen the program’s consistent elevation during his career. He initially committed to coach Tommy Tuberville, who was sworn into the United States Senate this week, and remained committed when Fickell took over. Ridder redshirted the 2017 season, and Collins nicknamed him the “Calvin Klein model” for his 170-pound frame.

Cincinnati went 4-8 that 2017 season, and since Ridder took over the Bearcats have improved drastically – 11-2, 11-3 and the undefeated regular season this year that ended 9-1. Fickell said he’s flattered that Ridder has enjoyed the journey enough to come back for one more ride.

Ridder is second on the school’s all-time passing list with 6,905 passing yards. He’s unlikely to get first, but he’s excited to see where the school’s No. 1 passer – his QB coach, Gino Guidugli (11,453) – can lead him this season.

“I’m thankful for [the coaches] for building me into the man I am today, and the player I am today,” Ridder said. “We’re excited and we’ve come a long way, taken a step every year with positive growth. There’s still something at the end to reach out and grab for, and we haven’t reached that yet. That’s going to keep us going.”

Desmond Ridder has only lost one college game to a team ranked outside the top 20, and that was @temple two years ago.

Good news for all involved. When Bryant announced his transfer I think we all knew this was coming.

I wonder how this all weighs on Freeman's decision.

(01-08-2021 12:05 PM)BcatMatt13 Wrote:  Desmond Ridder has only lost one college game to a team ranked outside the top 20, and that was @temple two years ago.

In a game where 10 points were taken off the board by the refs, including one of the most mind-meltingly ridiculous situations I've ever seen in that FG that was made while being broadcast on live TV, but taken off the board because it was kicked during a TV Timeout?

Good move, Des

Many of us (myself included) have given Des a lot of crap for some of his struggles passing the ball and making reads, but he really took a giant leap forward this year. I'm really excited to see him finish his career here. His return will definitely help our perception and pre-season ranking, and although I don't think he'll put up the numbers to be a Heisman finalist, he'll at least get some discussion.

As of last night at SMU I think we can say 2021 for the Red and Black is getting back on track. This news just keeps the good news coming.

(01-08-2021 12:26 PM)robertfoshizzle Wrote:  Many of us (myself included) have given Des a lot of crap for some of his struggles passing the ball and making reads, but he really took a giant leap forward this year. I'm really excited to see him finish his career here. His return will definitely help our perception and pre-season ranking, and although I don't think he'll put up the numbers to be a Heisman finalist, he'll at least get some discussion.

I was certainly one of those giving him a lot of crap early this year. Next year there's no time to get up to speed. Des needs to come ready to play his best football ever right away with games at Indiana and at Notre Dame in weeks 3 and 4.

If UC goes 4-0 to start the season with those two road wins they better be ranked Top 5 at that point. But that's a tall task.

I'm assuming Notre Dame will be preseason top 15 but soes anyone know what Indiana brings back. Are they expected to be this good again next year?

(01-08-2021 12:43 PM)nachoman91 Wrote:  

(01-08-2021 12:26 PM)robertfoshizzle Wrote:  Many of us (myself included) have given Des a lot of crap for some of his struggles passing the ball and making reads, but he really took a giant leap forward this year. I'm really excited to see him finish his career here. His return will definitely help our perception and pre-season ranking, and although I don't think he'll put up the numbers to be a Heisman finalist, he'll at least get some discussion.

I was certainly one of those giving him a lot of crap early this year. Next year there's no time to get up to speed. Des needs to come ready to play his best football ever right away with games at Indiana and at Notre Dame in weeks 3 and 4.

If UC goes 4-0 to start the season with those two road wins they better be ranked Top 5 at that point. But that's a tall task.

I'm assuming Notre Dame will be preseason top 15 but does anyone know what Indiana brings back. Are they expected to be this good again next year?

They bring back 7 starters on offense including Michael Penix Jr. and 8 starters on defense. They should be Top 25 to start the season, and we will be their first OOC test, so that will likely be a Top 20 matchup too.

Next year is literally the perfect storm:
1) Returning nearly all of your impact players
2) Fill the holes in your starting lineup with: An FCS All-American (Tunstall at LT), a 5* DT (Jowon Briggs), the best defensive player on the field in the Peach Bowl (Bryan Cook), a 2nd Team All Conference Safety (Javon Hicks), and a running back who many believe will be one of the best RBs in school history when it's all said and done (Jerome Ford)
2) Coming off a season where you were in "The Conversation" and ended up in the Top 10
3) A presumed Top 15-20 pre-season ranking
4) Play two OOC games against Top 25 P5 schools
5) Have what would generally be assumed to be your toughest conference games (UCF, SMU, Tulsa) at home
6) Have a ton of recruiting momentum already set up with the Class of '22

We could be looking at this as this next season as the one that made Cincinnati Football into household name.

I really don't understand the love affair with Penix. He seemed to be a really mediocre QB for the vast majority of last season who had an nice OT vs. Penn State and a good game against OSU. Maybe that's a sign he strings it all together next year, but I'm not sold on him.

(01-08-2021 12:53 PM)Cataclysmo Wrote:  I really don't understand the love affair with Penix. He seemed to be a really mediocre QB for the vast majority of last season who had an nice OT vs. Penn State and a good game against OSU. Maybe that's a sign he strings it all together next year, but I'm not sold on him.

Yeah, I definitely agree. He was a downgrade from Ramsey the year before.

(01-08-2021 12:53 PM)Cataclysmo Wrote:  I really don't understand the love affair with Penix. He seemed to be a really mediocre QB for the vast majority of last season who had an nice OT vs. Penn State and a good game against OSU. Maybe that's a sign he strings it all together next year, but I'm not sold on him.

From what I saw of Penix I was impressed. But I was more impressed with what Tom Allen has built there since they were able to plug and play after Penix went down. IU has mostly been an afterthought in the B10 for decades. We can argue about the state of other B10 schools in 2020, but taking down Penn State, Wisconsin, and Michigan in a single season along with taking national semi-finalist OSU down to the final drive of the game was impressive.

I anticipate a very challenging game in Bloomington this fall. If UC pulls off a win it will be highly valued by the talking heads. A win in South Bend would be even tougher to achieve. In terms of the NY6 bowl, neither will likely matter if UC can win the American once again.

The IU QB that started in the bowl game didn't look very good on TV.

(01-08-2021 01:29 PM)OKIcat Wrote:  

(01-08-2021 12:53 PM)Cataclysmo Wrote:  I really don't understand the love affair with Penix. He seemed to be a really mediocre QB for the vast majority of last season who had an nice OT vs. Penn State and a good game against OSU. Maybe that's a sign he strings it all together next year, but I'm not sold on him.

From what I saw of Penix I was impressed. But I was more impressed with what Tom Allen has built there since they were able to plug and play after Penix went down. IU has mostly been an afterthought in the B10 for decades. We can argue about the state of other B10 schools in 2020, but taking down Penn State, Wisconsin, and Michigan in a single season along with taking national semi-finalist OSU down to the final drive of the game was impressive.

I anticipate a very challenging game in Bloomington this fall. If UC pulls off a win it will be highly valued by the talking heads. A win in South Bend would be even tougher to achieve. In terms of the NY6 bowl, neither will likely matter if UC can win the American once again.

Agreed that we wouldn't need to win both for an NY6, but we have to win one. I don't think a team with 2-losses, regardless of who those losses are to, would get a NY6 bowl over an undefeated G5 team.

The Debby-Doo-Down-Down mood that I've been in since about 4 PM on January 1st has now dissipated. This was the piece we needed to feel really good about a repeat opportunity next season.

Quote:“I want to work on my body weight, accuracy, deep ball, leadership and my off-field development,” Ridder said. “Being in the film room and with the coaches, being a professional but in a college setting will help me become a better pro at the NFL level if I take steps forward now.”

One thing you can't coach is the desire to be the best and playing experience. Rid has both going in to Year 4 as a starter and that is intoxicating to the rest of the team and coaches. I truly believe he will improve as a passer and in the X's and O's for next season and that is a scary thought for the rest of our league and the OOC opponents. It also gives us another year to evaluate/develop Rid's replacement for 2022. Onward and upward!

(01-08-2021 12:04 PM)BearcatMan Wrote:  

Great vid! I love the text exchange between Des and Gino.

(01-08-2021 12:53 PM)Cataclysmo Wrote:  I really don't understand the love affair with Penix. He seemed to be a really mediocre QB for the vast majority of last season who had an nice OT vs. Penn State and a good game against OSU. Maybe that's a sign he strings it all together next year, but I'm not sold on him.

Penix is IU's Ridder.

He doesn't necessarily look great, but for some reason they just do better when he's in there.

But lets face it, IU was down 35-7 before O$U let off the gas. They had a decent year but I think we should beat them.

(01-08-2021 12:02 PM)BearcatMan Wrote:  This was posted in another thread, but I figured it warranted it's own so everyone can see the news:

Quote:Cincinnati’s Desmond Ridder returning to school, putting Bearcats back in CFP picture
Pete Thamel


“I want to work on my body weight, accuracy, deep ball, leadership and my off-field development,” Ridder said. “Being in the film room and with the coaches, being a professional but in a college setting will help me become a better pro at the NFL level if I take steps forward now.”

This is what I wanted to hear from Ridder and I hope he follows through. He needs to spend the ENTIRE off-season working on his decision making skills and his mechanics.

I'm not sure what Coach Fickell and Coach Guidugli can do to help get Ridder hooked up with some elite QB's and elite QB developers/camps, but I hope they use their connections to get Dez hooked up with the best resources.