With several Cincinnati Bearcats looking to join the New York Jets' Ahmad "Sauce" Gardner among 2022 NFL Draft picks, receiver Alec Pierce was the first UC standout drafted Friday night in the draft's second round.

And he won't have to travel far, as the Indianapolis Colts selected Pierce with the 53rd overall pick.

"Very very smart individual. ... This guy has legit 4.4 speed. ... Him and Michael Pittman together is going to be phenomenal. Absolutely phenomenal," ESPN draft analyst Louis Riddick said.

Social media reactions:

Defensive back Bryan Cook was the second Cincinnati Bearcats player selected in Friday night's second round of the 2022 NFL Draft, taken 62nd overall by the Kansas City Chiefs.

Cook, a former Mount Healthy High School standout, was the third Bearcat taken in the entire draft after defensive back Ahmad "Sauce" Gardner was taken by the New York Jets with the fourth overall pick on Thursday night.

UC receiver Alec Pierce went earlier in the second round to the Indianapolis Colts. The Bearcats had two third-rounders - quarterback Desmond Ridder (Atlanta Falcons) and defensive end Myjai Sanders (Arizona Cardinals).

"This past year - 93 tackles. ... He also broke up nine passes. So in coverage he got it done," ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. said of Cook. "Ability to tackle. ... He was an impactful performer in that Cincinnati Bearcats secondary, and one of their better defensive players. Run support, impressive speed to the football. Bryan Cook this year had one heck of a season."

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TORONTO – For the first time ever, the visitors' locker room at BMO Field was the one with the celebratory music turned all the way up at the conclusion of an FC Cincinnati-Toronto FC match.

FC Cincinnati on Saturday won at BMO Field for the first time, defeating Toronto, 2-1, before a crowd of 23,591.

The win saw FC Cincinnati improve to 3-5-1 on the season, and vault itself out of last place in the Eastern Conference. 

"I think it was an important three points considering recent games and not finding a way to get a point or three," FCC head coach Pat Noonan said. "You know, the LAFC game. Good point in Atlanta but prior to that, the loss at home to Montreal, was the one previous from that, so it's important to get back in the win column. I was really pleased up until their goal (in the 65th minute) just how we played and managed moments of the game to have some quality going forward. To have some confidence in playing with the ball on the ground and, defensively, I thought we did a pretty good job of getting a team that knows how to move the ball well and has some quality centrally to be able to cause some problems. 

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Nestled on a brown leather couch inside the Loft at The Biscuit Lounge, just a few miles from the Highlands neighborhood where he grew up, Desmond Ridder sat with his cellphone on his lap. His agent and managers paced, exchanging text messages while keeping their phones charged in a nearby outlet. But through the first two rounds of the 2022 NFL Draft, none of their phones rang.

It took longer than expected for Ridder to get the call, but once he did, the tears welling up in his eyes and the sound of the loud cheer erupting from the crowd huddled behind him were right on time.

While most projections had Ridder being selected anywhere from the middle of the first round to early in the second, the former University of Cincinnati quarterback finally received a call Friday night in the third round from an Atlanta area code.

"When I saw that number go across my phone and I saw the 'Atlanta, Georgia,' that's when I knew that's where I needed to be. That's where I want to be," Ridder told The Enquirer.

Getting the call from Atlanta: Desmond Ridder selected by Falcons

The call was from Atlanta Falcons General Manager Terry Fontenot, who then passed the phone to Falcons head coach Arthur Smith, who ultimately turned over the call to Falcons owner Arthur Blank. The trio informed Ridder that the organization was selecting the two-time American Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Year with the 74th overall pick.

By: Cincinnati Enquirer

Thousands of runners took to the streets for the 2022 Flying Pig full and half marathon. Use the tools below to find out how your favorite runner performed.

Source: Flying Pig

Note: This story was originally published in the May 20, 2012 Cincinnati Enquirer.

Johnny Bench played on the best Reds teams of all time, but he tries to forget being on maybe the worst Reds team ever.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the awful 1982 Cincinnati club, which went 61-101 and remains the only Reds team with triple-figure losses in a season.

"I do remember," Hall of Fame catcher Bench said, in a recent email to The Enquirer. "It's hanging on the wall. It was embarrassing and forgettable. So I have."

Bench added the abbreviation "Lol" to his email, the universal symbol for "laughing out loud." Which is what some Reds fans did in 1982 to keep from weeping.

The '82 Reds had a lethal combination of lackluster young players, veterans who had off-years and big-name players on the downside of their careers. Result: Last in the National League West, 28 games out.

"I try to forget everything I can about that year," said Ron Oester, second baseman on the '82 team. "That was the longest year of my baseball career."

The Reds won World Series titles in 1975 and '76 and remained strong entering the 1980s. In 1981 the Reds had the best record in baseball but did not make the playoffs. It was a strike year, and the Reds lost out because of a split-season divisional format.

1981 Cincinnati Reds:Season was a hallmark – in two ways

After '81, then-Reds general manager Dick Wagner engineered a roster makeover with an eye on finances. Outfielders Ken Griffey Sr. and George Foster were traded, as was third baseman Ray Knight. Outfielder Dave Collins left as a free agent.

Some predicted the Reds could not win after losing that much talent, and those forecasts proved painfully accurate.

"We realized early on it was not a very good baseball team, but I don't think anybody believed the depths of how bad that team really was," said Marty Brennaman, then and now the Reds' primary radio voice. "It was a team with a bunch of great guys, but you had guys with limited ability and guys who had seen their better years."

Former Cincinnati Reds outfielder Shogo Akiyama agreed to a Minor League deal with the San Diego Padres, according to a report from MLB.com's AJ Cassavell.

The Reds announced April 5 that they released Akiyama, who hit .224 in 366 plate appearances over parts of two seasons with the team. The team had informed him two days earlier that he would not make the team's Opening Day roster.

From Cassavell:

The Padres agreed to a Minor League deal with former Reds outfielder Shogo Akiyama, a source said. The club has yet to announce the signing. Akiyama, who was released by Cincinnati at the end of Spring Training, had a slash line of .224/.320/.274 in two seasons with the Reds.

The Padres previously had interest in Akiyama before he signed with the Reds in 2019. His presence helps bolster the San Diego outfield mix, which is reeling a bit from injuries to Wil Myers and Luke Voit. In the wake of Trayce Thompson's promotion to the big leagues, Akiyama could provide useful depth in the Minors.

Akiyama turned 34 in April.

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The offseason acquisition train has finally made a stop at Xavier. 

It's been a month since the Musketeers ended last season by winning the National Invitation Tournament championship, and many have wondered when new head coach Sean Miller would dip into the transfer portal waters to help bolster next season's roster. 

UTEP guard Souley Boum announced Monday that he's joining the Musketeers as a graduate transfer with one year of eligibility remaining. 

With the loss of Paul Scruggs and Nate Johnson, and Dwon Odom transferring to Georgia State, Xavier was in need of some help at the guard position and it appears they've found it in the 6-foot-3 Boum. 

Boum, who started in 28 games and averaged nearly 37 minutes per game last season, led UTEP in scoring with 19.9 points per game, which ranked 23rd nationally in Division I. Boum shot 41% from the field, 37% from beyond the arc (64-174) and 85% from the foul line. 

The Indianapolis Colts drafted a pair of Cincinnati Bearcats in second-round receiver Alec Pierce and sixth-round defensive tackle Curtis Brooks.

When the draft concluded, the Colts added Miami RedHawks safety Sterling Weatherford - seen by some as a potential defensive back/linebacker hybrid - as an undrafted free agent.

The 6-foot-4, 224-pound Weatherford joins fellow MU defensive back Mike Brown (signed by the Minnesota Vikings) and defensive back Cedric Boswell (signed by the Detroit Lions) - in addition to receiver Jack Sorenson, signed by the Bengals - among confirmed UDFAs.

Weatherford, who played in the Senior Bowl, finished his career at Miami with 209 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss, three sacks, 19 pass breakups, four interceptions, three fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles. He was voted to the 2021 All-MAC Second Team Defense at DB.

RedHawks defensive end Dominique Robinson was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the fifth round on Saturday.

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