The University of Cincinnati football team will have a secret weapon Saturday when the No. 2/3-ranked (Associated Press/USA Today Coaches polls) Bearcats take on host Navy (noon on ESPN2).
His name: Kyle Bolden.
A graduate assistant on UC head coach Luke Fickell's staff, Bolden's whistle will ring a little louder this week as the Bearcats (6-0, 2-0 American Athletic Conference) prepare to face the Midshipmen's dreaded triple-option offense.
"This week, he'll coach more than he's ever coached," Fickell said Tuesday.
Bolden, a former standout linebacker at Colerain High School, signed on in 2017 to play for Fickell at Cincinnati. But a severely torn ACL against Marshall in 2019 ended Bolden's playing career at UC.
Fickell allowed Bolden, the son of former Colerain and current Lakota West head coach Tom Bolden, to keep his scholarship and join the Cincinnati coaching staff.
More:Career-ending injury leads to another Bolden coaching football
More:Which Bolden QB is better? Tom at Colerain in '80s? Mitch at Lakota West?
One of Bolden's top responsibilities for Fickell now is to prepare the offensive scout team to give the Bearcats' "Blackcats" defense the best possible look when it's preparing for its next opponent. This week's opponent is Navy, which is 3-0 all time against Cincinnati in Annapolis, Maryland, and gave UC fits there in 2017.
"More than anything, that's the biggest difference from when we played them in year one to what we've done the last few years is we've given those guys a much greater look which gives them an opportunity to play faster," Fickell said.
On Sept. 23, 2017, the fourth game of Fickell's first season at Cincinnati, the Bearcats lost at Navy, 42-32. But this time around, Fickell has Bolden, who knows the triple-option offense better than maybe anyone in the tri-state. Well, anyone except for his father.
"KB, obviously coming from Colerain, running the triple option, the Veer, he's got a lot of experience with it," Cincinnati quarterback Desmond Ridder said. "So him being able to sit back there and coach up the scout guys, to be able to tell them exactly what looks they need to be giving and what to do here and there, it's huge to have a guy like him in our corner. His dad basically raised him on that offense. He's a huge part of what we do."
AAC Offensive Player of the Week Jerome Ford loves 'physical' runs
Cincinnati running back Jerome Ford is quickly becoming known for picking up massive chunks of yards against opposing defenses.
Since exploding onto the national scene with a career-high 79-yard run against Georgia in the Peach Bowl on New Year's Day, Ford has three runs of 50 or more yards.
The back-to-back American Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Week had a carry for 75 yards Oct. 8 against Temple and another 79-yard scamper last week against UCF.
More:Analysis: If Desmond Ridder's on the list of Heisman hopefuls, Jerome Ford should be too
As a defensive-minded head coach, Fickell knows those big runs can take the heart right out of a defense. Fickell said he's happy to have Ford on his team instead of having to be on the receiving end of those demoralizing gashes.
"To have a guy now where you can see run away from some guys ... the kid can go," Fickell said.
The long runs are nice, but those aren't what gets Ford going.
"It's always the physical ones that get me hype," said the 5-foot-11, 220-pound back. "When the O-line just pancakes all over the place, linebackers not being able to tackle, those are the ones that get me hype."
The selfless Ford also enjoys sharing the load and taking some of it away from Ridder. Ford said his No. 1 priority when he transferred from Alabama to Cincinnati before the start of the 2020 season was to do whatever he could to help Ridder and the offense.
"One of the biggest things I felt last year was I didn't really care about the stats," Ford said. "Just being a part of the offense and being a tool to help the offense move forward was something that was good enough for me. As long as I can help the offense move forward, I'll be fine."
More:Luke Fickell looks to get Cincinnati Bearcats running back Jerome Ford more involved
Ford's humility isn't an act, according to his teammates. His selflessness has even spread through the UC locker room.
"Jerome is one of the most humble guys on the team," Ridder said. "He puts everyone before himself and he'll make sure you know that. The other day, he came in with a '9 for Heisman' shirt, and I was just laughing. He was like, 'I've got to support my brothers.' He gives all of his praise to O-linemen and everyone else. He's a great guy to be around, a great person and a great player."
Coby Bryant again earns spot on AAC Honor Roll
For the second straight week, Cincinnati graduate cornerback Coby Bryant was named among the best performers in the AAC.
Bryant had a 74-yard pick-six last week to lead a UC defense that limited UCF to a season-low 296 yards of offense.
Bryant, a first-team All-AAC performer last season, is just one of a host of graduate players who are having a massive impact for defensive coordinator MIke Tressel.
"Those guys came back for a purpose. They came back with a reason," Fickell said. "As you go through these things, you would say that the biggest issue sometimes with young guys is they don't really have a purpose and a reason. They're just going about their business. But when you by nature have older guys, whether they were seniors that came back or normal seniors, they have a much different purpose. They're very much more intentional in what it is they're doing, and that's the example that's set."
Bryant's interception return touchdown was the first of his five-year UC career and the longest pick-six for the Bearcats since James Wiggins had an 86-yard return score against SMU on Oct. 27, 2018.
Bryant has two interceptions this season and nine for his career.
Scheduling update
Cincinnati will play at noon (11 a.m. Central time) at Tulane on Oct. 30. The game will air on ESPN2.
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