Former All-American returning for senior season with Cincinnati football
12/10/2024 10:32 AM
Cincinnati football defensive lineman Dontay Corleone is running it back. Corleone announced he’s returning to Cincinnati for one final season, per his social media.
Star @GoBEARCATS defensive lineman is returning again. Significant Big 12 news. https://t.co/4rvCynCZu3
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) December 9, 2024
“I have decided that my time as a Bearcat is not over. Let’s run it back one more time!” Corleone said in a statement on X, formerly Twitter.
Corleone is a former All-American who has been an anchor of the Bearcats defense for the last few years. The defensive lineman had 3.5 sacks in the 2024 season, along with 26 total tackles. In 2023, he picked up 39 total stops and three sacks.
Corleone’s best season was in 2022. In that campaign, the defensive lineman picked up 44 total tackles, forced two fumbles, and collected another three sacks. The Bearcat has had some health issues while he’s been with Cincinnati.
Cincinnati finished the 2024 season with a 5-7 record. The Bearcats just completed their second season as a member of the Big 12 Conference.
Cincinnati football has struggled in the Big 12 Conference
The Bearcats have had two losing seasons as members of the Big 12. In 2023, the team struggled through a disappointing 3-9 season, and finished last in the conference.
Things got better in 2024, but the Bearcats struggled near the end of the season. Cincinnati football finished the season on a five-game losing streak, and ended up missing a bowl game for the second straight year.
The Bearcats are led by coach Scott Satterfield, and he’s now facing high pressure to win in 2025. Satterfield has a woeful 8-16 record at the school in two seasons, including a 4-14 conference mark. He did show some improvement from year one to year two with the program, but Bearcats fans surely aren’t happy with how the season ended.
Satterfield had success before coming to Cincinnati football, especially while he was at Appalachian State. The coach won 51 games with the Mountaineers, and had three 10-win seasons. Satterfield also coached at Louisville, where he went 25-24 after four seasons with the Cardinals.
Keeping Corleone is definitely a good sign for the program. The defensive lineman finished the 2024 season as a First-Team All-Big 12 selection. He was second team all-conference in 2023. The defensive tackle plays a major role in leading the defense, and he’s clearly the leading voice on the field.
The Cincinnati football offense also received good news. Cincinnati also enters the 2025 season with quarterback Brendan Sorsby returning. The school and the quarterback agreed to a financial agreement that keeps him with the program for another season. Sorsby threw for 2,813 yards in 2024, and 18 touchdowns.
Cincinnati football fans have reason to hope that the team’s fortunes may be turning around.
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