By Bill Koch
The Cincinnati Enquirer

The Bearcats' recent success is drawing some local players back to Cincinnati, including (clockwise from top) Brett Hamblen, Kyle Koester, Jeff Henderson, Collin Carey, Mike Wright, Booker Vann and Richard Hall. (Glenn Hartong photo) | ZOOM |

Richard Hall was an Ohio State and Notre Dame fan while he was playing at Wyoming High School. The University of Cincinnati football program barely registered on his radar screen.

"I never really paid them any attention," Hall said.

The Ohio Division IV Player of the Year in 1998 signed with Ohio State and appeared on his way to becoming the next great Buckeyes tailback until problems arose with his academic eligibility.

That's when he took his first look at UC. He transferred there in the fall of 2001 and last year played as the backup to DeMarco McCleskey.

As the Bearcats prepare for their season opener Sept. 1 against East Carolina, Hall has emerged as UC's starting running back.

"I just wanted to be closer to home," Hall said. "I thought, 'What better place to be other than UC?' I knew the program was on the uprise and I wanted to be part of it. Then I saw Gino (Guidugli) was coming and it was an even better opportunity. I thought together we could do big things."

Hall is one of eight local high school products on the UC roster who originally signed with other schools, only to return to Cincinnati when things didn't work out.

The others are Guidugli, the Highlands High School quarterback who originally signed with Kentucky and switched to UC after then-head coach Hal Mumme resigned; quarterback Collin Carey (Elder); running back Kyle Koester (Elder); fullback Booker Vann (Middletown); wide receiver Jeff Henderson (Sycamore); defensive tackle Mike Wright (Purcell Marian); and wide receiver Brett Hamblen (Highlands).

Each player has his own reasons for leaving his original school, but they all have a common thread: the belief that playing at UC, once considered a black hole among the city's best high school football players, is now an attractive option.

The return of the hometown players has provided a huge boost to the UC program. Guidugli and Hall are starters. Vann is a valued reserve. Carey is competing to be Guidugli's backup. Wright, who was awarded a scholarship this year, earned a starting job last season before being sidelined by a knee injury. And Hamblen has looked impressive during the preseason in his first year with the Bearcats.

"That's certainly not Plan A," UC coach Rick Minter said of the local transfers. "We don't want to be the safety net for these guys. We'll deal with each of them individually depending on what our needs are. These guys aren't crawling back home and jumping in and being given a scholarship. They have to earn them."

Some of these players are forfeiting scholarships for the chance to return home. Elder's Carey spent two years on scholarship at Eastern Michigan before he decided to transfer to UC and pay his own way.

"We weren't a very good team," Carey said of EMU. "We won three games the first year and two the second year. A whole lot of guys were transferring out. It didn't look like the program was going anywhere. I wanted to come somewhere close to home, and I thought this was a good system that would be good for me."

Like Hall, Carey didn't think much about the Bearcats program while he was in high school. But while he was struggling through those losing seasons at Eastern Michigan, he noticed that things were improving back home at UC.

"Before I left, they weren't on TV much," Carey said. "You didn't hear about them. They didn't win a whole lot. When I was away at school, I'd see them in bowl games. They'd be on ESPN and I'd see them winning. They looked like a completely different program."

Vann had a similar experience. He wasn't recruited heavily by UC while he was rushing for 1,360 yards and 16 touchdowns as a senior at Middletown.

"They sent me letters, but it wasn't like coaches were calling," Vann said.

He went off to play at Kent State and when he decided he wasn't happy there, he, too, took a fresh look at UC.

"While I was at Kent, I noticed they were picking things up," Vann said. "They went to two bowl games. It was a drastic turnaround from when I left high school. I was either going to come here or go to Miami. I chose to walk on here."

Vann, who was awarded a scholarship this year, played in every game at fullback for UC last year, including one as a starter. Used primarily as a blocking back, he caught three passes for 22 yards and a touchdown. He also carried six times for 20 yards.

His only regret is that he didn't transfer sooner.

"Last year is probably the most fun I ever had playing ball since high school," Vann said. "My family got to see me play. Everything was just fun, like going to a bowl game. I didn't get to experience that at Kent. I'm glad I made the decision to come here."

Those words are music to the ears of UC's Minter, who has made great strides in recent years toward keeping local talent home. He would prefer to sell the local kids on UC from the outset - and in many cases, he has - but if they have to go someplace else before they settle back at UC, as long as they can help the program, Minter isn't complaining.

"I think it's a good thing," he said. "We're not viewing it as a negative. If they can say it's hard to beat home, or life wasn't as green on the other side of the fence as they thought it was going to be, we'll spin it our way with the kids.

"All we want in recruiting is an equal chance to get them on our campus. If we do, we think we have a shot."

Local UC players who originally signed with other schools

Player	Year	Pos.	HS	Former college
Collin Carey	Jr.	QB	Elder	Eastern Michigan
Gino Guidugli	Jr.	QB	Highlands	Kentucky
Richard Hall	Jr.	RB	Wyoming	Ohio State
Jeff Henderson	Jr.	WR	Sycamore	Morehead State
Kyle Koester	So.	RB	Elder	Indiana
Mike Wright	Jr.	DT	Purcell Marian	Ashland College
Booker Vann	Sr.	FB	Middletown	Kent State
Brett Hamblen	So.	WR	Highlands	Kentucky