With the 2024 college football season just a few short weeks away, PFF College released its 2025 NFL Draft Defensive Tackle Rankings via Trevor Sikkema.
On the list, Cincinnati defensive tackle Dontay Corleone came in at No. 4, trailing the Michigan Wolverines’ star duo of Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant, as well as Kentucky’s Deone Walker.
Corleone placed 11th among FBS tackles with an overall grade of 83.6 after tallying 10 tackles for loss in 2023.
This summer, Corleone received a scary diagnosis of blood clots in his lungs, which threatened to put his football career in jeopardy. However, at Big 12 Media Days, head coach Scott Satterfield said that Corleone is “back working out with the team.”
“He is back with our team,” Satterfield said. “He started working out last week, he was with our team yesterday so he will continue to work out all summer. We’re taking it day by day but hopefully as we progress throughout the summer and head to fall camp that he’ll be available to play and available to go.
“I know he wants to play. He’s an incredible young man, but we’ll take this day by day and we’ll see where it ends up at. Obviously the hope is that he’ll be able to play this fall.”
Last season, Corleone finished with 39 total tackles, three sacks, and one forced fumble. 22 of those tackles were solo, as the Bearcats completed their first season playing in the Big 12 Conference. However, the team missed the opportunity to play in a bowl game for the first time since 2017, finishing 3-9.
The Bearcats will look to start off the 2024 season strong in their season opener against Towson at home on Saturday, Aug. 31 at 2:30 p.m. EST.
