Tag: Dontay Corleone

Top DT prospect opts to return to college for 2025

Top DT prospect Dontay Corleone opts to return to college at Cincinnati for 2025

One of the better defensive tackle prospects in consideration for the 2025 NFL Draft has opted to stay in school. Dontay Corleone from Cincinnati announced via his social media that he’s going to be a Bearcat for one more season.

“The Godfather”, as aptly nicknamed, has recorded 5.5 TFLs and 3.5 sacks while playing almost exclusively as a 0-tech nose tackle in his third season at Cincinnati. Corleone is a local product, and the loyalty to his hometown and teammates in the Bearcat program clearly mean a lot to him.

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As a 2025 draft prospect, Corleone was generally projected in the middle rounds. He was a top 75 prospect for Draft Wire before his removal from the draft board due to his return.

Chiefs scouting report: Cincinnati Bearcats NT Dontay Corleone

The Kansas City #Chiefs should consider selecting Cincinnati #Bearcats nose tackle Dontay Corleone in the 2025 NFL draft.

The Kansas City Chiefs need to add depth along their defensive line as several contributors prepare to enter free agency after the 2024 season. Selecting a run-stuffing nose tackle in the 2025 NFL draft would free up Chris Jones to focus on rushing the passer and fill a position of need.

Cincinnati Bearcats lineman Dontay Corleone is one of the shortest nose tackles in the 2025 class, but he’s a ball of muscle and power. According to The Athletics’ Bruce Feldman, Corleone benches 485 lbs., squats 605 lbs., and deadlifts 700 lbs. He projects as a two-down lineman who focuses on anchoring at the point of attack to clog run lanes.

Corleone’s naturally low pad level, thick frame, and wide base make him difficult to displace. Single blockers can’t shake his foundation. Double teams occasionally move Corleone off the line, but he wins his share of those battles.

Corleone dominates when isolated against centers. He drives excellent power through his precise hands to uproot linemen and reset the line of scrimmage. Corleone stuns centers with his powerful punches and arm extensions. Despite lacking ideal arm length, Corleone possesses the strength to discard blockers at will in the run game.

Corleone moves with surprising burst for his size but looks a little slower in 2024 compared to previous years. This might be due to an issue with blood clots shortening his offseason prep period. His agility and speed will improve if he shaves some bad weight off his frame.

Corleone primarily serves as a run-stopping force on the interior, but he disrupts the passing game by driving centers into the pocket and forcing the quarterback to roll out.

The Bearcats host the TCU Horned Frogs in their final game of the season on Saturday at 5:00 p.m. CST.

Cincinnati defensive tackle cleared to play after blood clot scare

Great news for Cincinnati’s Dontay Corleone. He was cleared to start playing football again following blood clots in June.

It was a great day on campus for the Cincinnati Bearcats. The big 6’1, 320 lbs defensive tackle Dontay Corleone was cleared to resume all football activities, following treatments for blood clots in his lungs.

The treatments started in June, which significantly limited Corleone in training camp. He did not play in the win over Towson, and is not likely to play against Pittsburgh this weekend, but is on his way back.

When asked about his feelings in regards to returning to the field, Corleone had this to say to reporters:

I’m excited to be back on the field with my brothers. I also want to thank all of our fans for their love and support throughout this process. For the last few months, I have worked extremely hard to make a return.

Head coach Scott Satterfield is excited to have him back as well. Corleone was a second-team All-Big 12 selection last season with 39 tackles. In 2022 he had 45 tackles, along with three sacks. Satterfield said this about the return:

Dontay has really worked hard to get to this point, and we are excited to have him back. Despite being limited, he has stepped up as a team leader and maintained a steadying influence on the team. We are grateful to our medical staff for implementing a plan that will allow Dontay to play. We will continue to closely monitor him. We are thrilled he is healthy and ready to come back.

The Bearcats will host Pittsburgh this weekend, and then head to Miami OH next weekend. Cincinnati will host Houston on September 21st in their first Big 12 game of the season.

2024 NFL mock draft roundup: Ravens look to add elite defenders to the roster

We’re doing a 2024 NFL mock draft roundup and the Baltimore Ravens are projected to target elite defenders

The Ravens are 9-3 and atop the AFC North, but it’s never too early for a look ahead to the 2024 NFL draft.

Baltimore could lose Justin Madubuike (DT), and Patrick Queen (LB) in free agency.

We recently looked at the mock drafts from around the country, and the consensus has Baltimore reloading on defense, especially in the secondary or at edge rusher.

Week 9 CFB prospect watch guide: Players with something to prove

Here are a few 2024 NFL draft prospects who can answer some questions scouts might have about their NFL potential in CFB Week 9.

The final weekend of October should be another exciting one for college football. There are some big matchups, some interesting games out of the national spotlight and some NFL draft prospects with chances to shine.

It’s a good Saturday slate to focus on some 2024 prospects who still have something to prove to the NFL scouts who will be at their games and pore over their game film. The evaluation process is far from over, even though the college season is entering the final month for a lot of teams.

Here are a few 2024 NFL draft prospects who can answer some questions scouts might have about their NFL potential in CFB Week 9.

Browns land talented in-state defensive tackle in 2024 NFL Mock Draft

The Browns add another piece to the interior of their defensive line in a new mock draft.

As the college football season is in full swing, so are 2024 NFL Mock Drafts. And in a new one done by Draft Wire’s Curt Popejoy, the Cleveland Browns stay in-state to add another piece to the interior defensive line. With the 52nd overall pick in this two-round mock draft, the Browns were mocked the Cincinnati Bearcats’ standout defensive tackle Dontay Corleone.

On the season so far for the Bearcats, Corleone has been credited with a massive nine stop tackles from his interior post. He is one of the very best run-stuffing defensive tackles in college football. As a pass rusher, Corleone has registered one sack and five total pressures along the Cincinnati front.

Another defensive tackle makes sense for the Browns as they currently only have two under contract beyond 2023 in Dalvin Tomlinson and Siaki Ika. Where this doesn’t make sense, however, is that the Browns will more than likely be looking for a gap-shooting three-tech rather than another stuffer like both Tomlinson and Ika are.

It is still far too early to tell, but it is so good to have football back in full swing.

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No. 14 Sooners vs Cincinnati Bearcats: How to Watch, key players, weather forecast for gameday

The Sooners are going to be in for a battle this weekend, let’s take a look at how you can watch, the impact players, injury report and what’s the weather going to be like.

The Oklahoma Sooners are set to take on the [autotag]Cincinnati Bearcats[/autotag] on Saturday. This is the first conference game for both teams.

The Sooners are coming off a 3-0 nonconference slate whereas the Bearcats are coming off a heartbreaking overtime loss to in-state foe Miami (Oh.). But don’t let that game fool you. The Bearcats had seven trips to the red zone and only scored on four of them, two of which were field goals.

That’s how you beat yourself in a game you should win. This game is going to be a lot more interesting than people think. This is the best defensive line the Sooners have faced to date and could be the best they face all season.

But that doesn’t mean the offense isn’t any good. They rank No. 12 in the nation in total yards and No. 8 in the nation in rushing. The Sooners’ 15th-ranked rushing defense is going to be tested once again and the Bearcats have a very good dual-threat quarterback at the helm.

Not to mention this is going to be Fox’s Big Noon Kickoff game, the only time Oklahoma is making the trip as conference foes, and is expected to be a blackout for Cincinnati.

But without giving too much away, let’s dive into how you can watch the Sooners on the road.

Cincinnati Bearcats Color Analyst Jim Kelly breaks down the Week 4 matchup

The Sooners take on the Cincinnati Bearcats and Color Analyst Jim Kelly lets us know what to expect.

The Oklahoma Sooners open [autotag]Big 12[/autotag] play against the [autotag]Cincinnati Bearcats[/autotag] in their first true road game of the season. The Bearcats come in with one of the best defensive lines in all of college football.

They also come in with the No. 8 rushing attack and the No. 12 overall offense. Many people will look at last week’s loss to the Miami (OH) Redhawks, but in that game, Cincinnati beat themselves. In the Bearcats seven trips to the red zone, they only scored two touchdowns and a pair of field goals.

Color Analyst for the Bearcats, [autotag]Jim Kelly[/autotag], talked with me on my podcast, Eat. Sleep. Bedlam. He said the offense was the unit hurt the most when former Head Coach Luke Fickell left.

“Most of that affected the offense,” Kelly said. “That’s the side of the ball that we thought, we don’t really know what to expect. The defensive side, a lot of folks stayed.”

Two of the guys Sooner fans better get to know are [autotag]Dontay Corleone[/autotag] and [autotag]Jowon Briggs[/autotag]. Those two both play along the defensive line and most likely will be playing on Sundays in the future.

New Head Coach [autotag]Scott Satterfield[/autotag], who was the head coach for the Louisville Cardinals a year ago, brings over an entirely new scheme. Kelly said they are a staff that usually likes to bring pressure.

“They like to blitz a lot, although they’ve played it more straight this year,” Kelly said. “Brian Brown is the defensive coordinator. He came from Louisville with coach Satterfield. They led the nation last year in sacks. So he plays a really aggressive style. However, I don’t think he feels like he has the corners, particularly against a team like Oklahoma and what [autotag]Dillon Gabriel[/autotag] was able to do last week.”

There’s no question the Sooners are going to have to attack this secondary. The running game will probably have to be more outside runs, and offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby may opt for short, quick passes to supplement the running game.

Offensively they have to stop the run. Make [autotag]Emory Jones[/autotag] beat you with his arm. They have three really good running backs to go along with Jones running the ball.

If the Sooners are able to do that, we could be looking at another rout. I don’t expect that. I expect this one to be closer than many people think.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Jaron on Twitter @JaronSpor.

5 players to watch for the Oklahoma Sooners and the Cincinnati Bearcats

There will be plenty of talent on the field for the Sooners and the Bearcats but here are the five who will make the biggest impact.

[autotag]Big 12[/autotag] play is finally here for the Oklahoma Sooners. The Sooners went 3-0 in nonconference play for the second year in a row under Brent Venables.

But if people remember last season, this is when the wheels fell off. The Sooners went on to win three games the rest of the way and started the conference slate with a three-game losing streak.

This year feels different for the Sooners, but you can’t help but see some similarities in this game vs. the [autotag]Cincinnati Bearcats[/autotag] and last season vs. the [autotag]Kansas State Wildcats[/autotag]. The Wildcats were coming off of a loss to a Group of Five team. The Bearcats are coming off a loss to a Group of Five team.

Kansas State’s strength was their play in the trenches. Cincinnati’s strength is their play in the trenches. Kansas State brought in a running quarterback. Cincinnati brings in a running quarterback.

There are a lot of similarities in this game, but on paper, Cincinnati isn’t nearly as talented as that Kansas State team. But that doesn’t mean they don’t have any talent.

Let’s take a look at five players to watch for both teams for this Week 4 game.

Oklahoma OL Cayden Green ready for the challenge of learning a new position

Cayden Green was thrown into the fire on Saturday but says he’s up for the challenge of playing a new position.

It is no secret, that the offensive line has not lived up to expectations, in particular in the run game. The Oklahoma Sooners once again did not average at least five yards per carry something they have said is a goal.

During the win against Tulsa, starting left guard [autotag]Savion Byrd[/autotag] went out with an injury. It’s still unclear what that injury is and how long he will be out for. True freshman [autotag]Cayden Green[/autotag] Troy Everett filled in for Byrd.

Green has primarily been playing left tackle but with Jacob Sexton returning to action, Green moved to guard.

Green said he was made aware of the change early last week.

“I got called in for a meeting with Coach B (Bedenbaugh), and I didn’t really know what it was about, and then he told me Monday. And I was kind of like, ‘Oh okay,” Green said. “As soon as I left the meeting, I had just gotten out of class so I went straight to work.”

Green performed fairly well in his first action at left guard. He’s someone I thought could be in for a move to guard if all went well.

Green said there are some differences with the position switch. “I think schematically they’re about the same,” Green said. “But I think technique-wise and speed of the game-wise, everything happens a lot faster closer to you.”

While it will be a challenge for Green to learn a new position during the season, if he’s able to handle it, it could pay big dividends for the Sooners going forward.

The unfortunate thing for Green is his second game playing a new position will be against one of the best defensive tackles in the nation, Dontay Corleone.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Jaron on Twitter @JaronSpor.