With the 2023 college football season on our doorsteps and Week 0 games all finished up, it’s officially game week for the rest of the country. Cincinnati gets kicked off in a bout with Eastern Kentucky on Saturday. The Scott Satterfield led Cincinnati Bearcats with a new look staff and many transfers aim to start the season on a high note.
This season brings much intrigue for Bearcat fans, brand new staff, brand new conference, and finally making the jump into the Power 5. Cincinnati has undoubtedly proved that it deserves this new opportunity. However, it won’t be a seamless move with the departure of Luke Fickell’s staff and many players. There’s a lot of change for those dawning the C-Paw this season.
Looking at Two New Cincinnati Transfers
With a new and more competitive conference, new coach Satterfield had to make some aggressive moves. He had to put together the staff and roster to be able to compete in the Big 12 sufficiently. And in this new era of college football with conference realignment, NIL deals, and transfer portal leeway, Satterfield had the opportunity to make some splashes. The Bearcats did just that in the transfer portal. They brought in a whopping 23 transfers. Many are high-level guys who have valuable experience playing in the Power 5 and will be able to come and contribute immediately. The Cats will rely on many of these guys in a big way this season. Here are a few that need pointing out for Bearcat fans, expect to see them all over your screens this year making a big impact.
A New Face on the Defensive Side
A few new faces on the offensive side of the ball for this year were elaborated on here, and the offense will look a lot more different than the defense this season. But, Utah St transfer Daniel Grzesiak is a guy who can make a big impact and help keep up the elite Cincinnati defensive standard this team has had over the past several years.
The Los Angeles native is now a long way from home. He comes to Cincinnati with great hopes of being able to stack up some serious numbers this year. Grzesiak is a redshirt senior and played four seasons for the Aggies. He had extreme success out in the Mountain West. He has 16 career sacks and eight-and-a-half of them came last season, including two in the bowl game against Memphis. Grzesiak is listed as an outside linebacker. Fans should expect to see him do a good bit of pass-rushing this year. He and Deshawn Pace will both be hybrid guys who play at multiple levels. For Grzesiak, it’ll be rushing off the edge with the first level and also dropping into some coverages in the hook and flat areas.
New defensive coordinator Bryan Brown is known for his aggressive style of defense. His Louisville Cardinals team led the nation in sacks last season. That had to be a great selling point for Grzesiak to make the move East. With Grzesiak coming into his own as a pass rusher, combined with an aggressive defensive coordinator, expect number nine to be a force for this Cincinnati defense.
SEC Transfer on the Offense
The leader in the clubhouse to be the starting right tackle for Cincinnati this year is Kentucky transfer, Deondre Buford. There’s been a noticeable change on the offensive line this season and Buford could be one of several transfers to start. Luke Kandra and Trevor Radosevich are a few others.
Buford comes from a high school that all Bearcats should know and love, Martin Luther King High School, the same school that sent Sauce Gardner their way several years ago. Buford was a highly talented recruit coming out of the Detroit area. He was a four-star prospect out of the 2020 class and was ranked as the tenth overall player in Michigan. He played two seasons at Kentucky plus a red-shirt year. Appearing in all 13 games last season, Buford started two of them.
The red-shirt junior stands at six-foot-three inches and is 315 pounds. He’s got a good build but stands at the height of a borderline tackle or guard. However, he does have long arms. He should have the ability to be an ideal front-side tackle, which he looks to be in this offense. Buford brings great experience and ability from an SEC program. He’s gone up against his fair share of elite talents. With a few years left of eligibility, look for Buford to hold down an offensive line position this season and hopefully beyond.
Take Aways
Change, change, change. Seems like the theme of this 2023 Cincinnati team. A new coaching staff, a new conference, and a whole lot of new transfers to Cincinnati. These changes are good though. Grzesiak and Buford are just two transfers that fans should be excited about. Hope and expect to see Grzesiak causing chaos in backfields and ruining opposing quarterback’s games. Then on offense, Buford should help anchor a steady offensive line for new quarterback Emory Jones.
Photo courtesy: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
