June 13, 2026 • 9 mins
Nic Cardwell is UC's Co-Offensive Coordinator and Offensive Line Coach. He joined us on ESPN1530.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
New co offensive coordinators.
Speaker 2 (00:02):
One of them is Nick Cardwell, entering is a fourth
season on the UC coaching staff, has been coaching the
offensive line. He's going to continue doing that. Kind enough
to join us this afternoon, coach, good afternoon.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
How are you, oh?
Speaker 3 (00:15):
Doing fantastic?
Speaker 2 (00:16):
Doing great so with new responsibility. What has the off
season been like?
Speaker 4 (00:22):
Well, I think we've done. We've had quite a bit
of unit meetings, just trying to get everybody on the
same page for what we do offensively. Anytime you bring
in a lot of transfer guys and you got some
freshmen that have come in as well, we all got
to get on the same page of what we're trying
to get executed up front and with the wideouts and
tight ends as well.
Speaker 2 (00:42):
All Right, you talk about upfront now, in this day
and age of you know, twenty players, twenty five players
coming in in the offseason and lack of continuity, You've
enjoyed tremendous continuity upfront that will continue this year with
Evan Tengas Doll, Taran Tayo, and Joe Cotton. It is
it's seeming rare in this day and age to have that.
But how nice is that to be able to lean on.
Speaker 4 (01:04):
Man, I tell you what what, We're truly lucky and
blessed to have those guys. You know, every year you
want to keep your best players, and every year there's
there's people trying to take your best players. This is
the new way of what college football is. And so
those three guys had ample opportunity to leave and go
somewhere else, but they know that we're building something special
here and they're excited about this season and excited to
(01:27):
get some guys out there to watch them play, and
so they worked really hard. They enjoy being around each
other and the camaraderie and the development that they're having,
and so we're excited to have those guys back. But
it's surely a luxury to us to have them.
Speaker 1 (01:42):
What does that mean for guys who are joining the.
Speaker 4 (01:44):
Program, Well, it means leadership, somebody to look up to
and there and there's a standard. And what we try
to tell our guys is that the standard is inside
of you. Every single day. When you walk into that
weight room, are you come on this field, you are
carrying the standard. And our thing on the offensive side
of the ball has been the standard over everything. And
(02:06):
so for coach Saderfield, you know, for the team, but
for what we're doing as a standard, how we practice,
how we eat, how we take care of our bodies.
All the things that we do should be at a
high standard. And so you got to show They've got
to show these young guys, and they got to show
these transfer portal guys what it means to be a
Bearcat no.
Speaker 3 (02:25):
Matter where they come from.
Speaker 4 (02:26):
I don't care if.
Speaker 3 (02:27):
It's an SCS team or an SEC team.
Speaker 4 (02:30):
They need to know how we do things here and
the kind of grit and toughness it takes to play here.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
On the offensive side of the ball. What do the
new guys bring.
Speaker 4 (02:40):
I think we've got Kyle Lee, some explosive wide receivers
that have come in, especially JV. He does a great
job with the guys Isaiah who's a returner, and another
transfer kid who came in from Kent State who was
really really talented. Lorenzo's center, another great wide receiver who
(03:01):
does a great job for us. And this is what
we saw in the in the spring. In the backfield,
you got cold Tab, you got your brown pain. Both
transfer guys super smart kids. Obviously they transferred in from
Stanford and uh and Notre Dame and then a returner
in Zion got and they had a tremendous spring as
far as understanding our system and the great zone readers says,
(03:24):
they run the football and uh j C does a
great job of distributing as well and at the helm,
and so we're excited for the guys, excited, you know,
to produce. We had a great year. We felt like
last year offensively, we went out there and scored a
lot of points and had a ton of explosive plays,
and so we got to continue to carry that out
throughout the year.
Speaker 1 (03:42):
What do you like most about JC French?
Speaker 4 (03:45):
I like What I like most about him is that
he is a stable individual. He's going he's going to
move the change, he can do some dynamic things with
his arm, and he can actually run a pretty good bit.
I mean he ran well in in the spring ball
as well. But more than anything, he's a great leader.
But he's he's stable, he knows he knows how to
just keep the ball moving. Let's keep the ball moving.
(04:07):
And there may be some times that he takes risks,
but they're very calculated risks and and as as we
all know, you got to take care of the football.
You know, I think last year some of the turnovers
got us in the late games, especially in November, and
so we want to make sure that we're taking care
of the football. And that's what he is. He's the
kind of kid that's going to take care of the football,
get us in the right play up front and be
(04:28):
consistent day in and day out.
Speaker 1 (04:31):
What what are you allowed to do with the guys?
Speaker 2 (04:33):
Now we're still, you know, nearly two months away from
fall camp. But you told me off air you're watching
guys run around? Are is that pretty much it? What
What are you allowed to do with the guys at
this point?
Speaker 4 (04:43):
Well, they'll do they'll do some running around, you know,
and these guys we get some time to do individual
work with them.
Speaker 3 (04:49):
So you get some some endie.
Speaker 4 (04:51):
Time with them, uh one on one and then you know,
doing little individual drills with a hand placements you get.
You have plenty of meeting time with them as well,
and so you get a lot of that stuff all
summer long, and so we're taking full advantage of it.
I mean, I know you've seen this this new indoors
great for our guys. It's been a phenomenal, but it's
(05:12):
a great tool to be able to pull some guys
aside and be able to work a little bit of
their individual and work in their hands and combinations.
Speaker 2 (05:18):
Having gone through it as a player, what are these
what are these weeks like for a freshman who's done,
I'm sure a lot of stuff being thrown at him.
Go back to when you were a player, What are
those first few weeks like when you're on campus and
learning what it's.
Speaker 1 (05:31):
Like to be a college football player.
Speaker 3 (05:33):
Everything's happening fast.
Speaker 4 (05:35):
I mean, everything's happening fast.
Speaker 3 (05:37):
You're the biggest transition.
Speaker 4 (05:39):
We tell guys from high school to college is tom management.
Your mom and Dad's not there to wake you up
in the morning. You've got to be in here. You
got Nico getting after you, where all the coaches are
here making sure that you're doing what you're supposed.
Speaker 3 (05:51):
To be doing.
Speaker 4 (05:52):
And then you turn around and now we've got to
be at a class. Then you turn around, Now you
got to go eat, and so learning how to manage
that time and really trying to manage any of the.
Speaker 3 (06:00):
Free time that you have. It's really not a ton
in using.
Speaker 4 (06:04):
That free time to help yourself get better, but it is.
Speaker 1 (06:08):
It is a lot.
Speaker 3 (06:09):
It is.
Speaker 4 (06:09):
It is a lot of verbiage. It is a lot
of where's the woman's on my hands? Where should I
put my feet?
Speaker 3 (06:15):
You know? You know, what are we doing here?
Speaker 4 (06:16):
What does this term mean? How do I get lined up?
It is? It's a lot for these guys at one time.
But I feel like we've done a great job with
that because.
Speaker 3 (06:25):
When we started with the transfer portal.
Speaker 4 (06:26):
System, you're getting new guys every year, and so we
kind of streamlined the system to where, hey, you're meeting here,
then you're walking through this, then you're executing this.
Speaker 3 (06:35):
In a team segment, then you're executing.
Speaker 4 (06:37):
This here here here, And so I think we've done
a good job of trying to get guys called up
to where the guys at have been here for a while.
Speaker 2 (06:43):
Understand thing, Do you have one or two things that
are at the top of your to do list for
one's fault camp kids here?
Speaker 4 (06:52):
I think multiple fronts for us upfront. We want to
make sure that we are sound on those multiple fronts
on what's happening upfront as far as offensive line, but
I'd say overall as an offensive unit, the main thing
is it's going to be effort every single play given
great effort. You got four to six seconds every play
(07:15):
moving from point A to point B. How fast can
you get there? Can you do it with some discipline?
Can you get your depths on your route? Can you
give us extra blocking? And even through springball man our
wide receivers blocking on the perimeters is the best I've
seen in five years. And I might not sound like
a big deal to everybody that's that's not flashy, but
you throw a ball out there and it's getting blocked up, well,
(07:37):
that thing's gone and that's another explosive play. So the
main thing for offensive unit is going to be effort.
It's going to be effort.
Speaker 2 (07:45):
What is it like coaching a unit, coaching an offensive
line without Gavin Gerhardt?
Speaker 4 (07:51):
You know, you start to I think, so you can't
replace a guy like that, A tremendous leader on and
off the field, a guy that's got a ton of snaps,
that understands every single defense and the weaknesses. But he
also understands what we're trying to do with our play,
what every single play is trying to do, where we're
(08:12):
trying to hit the ball where it's trying to go.
And so how he communicates it's hard to replace somebody
like that. But our guys have done a great job.
And what I've taught even when I was a player.
Speaker 3 (08:24):
This is what I've always taught my guys.
Speaker 4 (08:26):
The through sign of leadership is the ability to reproduce yourself.
And that's what Gavin has done. And guys like Terarn
and guys like Evan and in guys.
Speaker 3 (08:36):
Like Joe Cotton and even Exavier Losa Wiki you know.
Speaker 4 (08:39):
Guys like Judea, Nolan Ladelipe, like the whole crew. And
I told them, I said, you guys are got a
front row seat to seeing a great leader day in
and day out.
Speaker 3 (08:52):
Take notes, pay attention to the little things. It's not
just about the way he plays the game. It's the
way he cleans.
Speaker 4 (08:58):
The locker room. It's the way he interacts with.
Speaker 3 (08:59):
The wider severs to make sure they're doing what they're supposed.
Speaker 4 (09:01):
To be doing. It's every little thing. And so our
guys have seen that in all spring and even this summer,
we've seen them stepped up. So we're excited for this season.
I mean, and not just that man defense is getting
after it now. Coach Willie is doing a great job.
Speaker 2 (09:15):
With those guys, sounds like it. I can't thank you enough.
Always enjoy talking to you. I'm sure i'll bother you
as the season gets close, so I appreciate the time.
Speaker 3 (09:23):
Man, well, let's get these guys out here. Don't watch
these boys play some ball.
New co offensive coordinators.
Speaker 2 (00:02):
One of them is Nick Cardwell, entering is a fourth
season on the UC coaching staff, has been coaching the
offensive line. He's going to continue doing that. Kind enough
to join us this afternoon, coach, good afternoon.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
How are you, oh?
Speaker 3 (00:15):
Doing fantastic?
Speaker 2 (00:16):
Doing great so with new responsibility. What has the off
season been like?
Speaker 4 (00:22):
Well, I think we've done. We've had quite a bit
of unit meetings, just trying to get everybody on the
same page for what we do offensively. Anytime you bring
in a lot of transfer guys and you got some
freshmen that have come in as well, we all got
to get on the same page of what we're trying
to get executed up front and with the wideouts and
tight ends as well.
Speaker 2 (00:42):
All Right, you talk about upfront now, in this day
and age of you know, twenty players, twenty five players
coming in in the offseason and lack of continuity, You've
enjoyed tremendous continuity upfront that will continue this year with
Evan Tengas Doll, Taran Tayo, and Joe Cotton. It is
it's seeming rare in this day and age to have that.
But how nice is that to be able to lean on.
Speaker 4 (01:04):
Man, I tell you what what, We're truly lucky and
blessed to have those guys. You know, every year you
want to keep your best players, and every year there's
there's people trying to take your best players. This is
the new way of what college football is. And so
those three guys had ample opportunity to leave and go
somewhere else, but they know that we're building something special
here and they're excited about this season and excited to
(01:27):
get some guys out there to watch them play, and
so they worked really hard. They enjoy being around each
other and the camaraderie and the development that they're having,
and so we're excited to have those guys back. But
it's surely a luxury to us to have them.
Speaker 1 (01:42):
What does that mean for guys who are joining the.
Speaker 4 (01:44):
Program, Well, it means leadership, somebody to look up to
and there and there's a standard. And what we try
to tell our guys is that the standard is inside
of you. Every single day. When you walk into that
weight room, are you come on this field, you are
carrying the standard. And our thing on the offensive side
of the ball has been the standard over everything. And
(02:06):
so for coach Saderfield, you know, for the team, but
for what we're doing as a standard, how we practice,
how we eat, how we take care of our bodies.
All the things that we do should be at a
high standard. And so you got to show They've got
to show these young guys, and they got to show
these transfer portal guys what it means to be a
Bearcat no.
Speaker 3 (02:25):
Matter where they come from.
Speaker 4 (02:26):
I don't care if.
Speaker 3 (02:27):
It's an SCS team or an SEC team.
Speaker 4 (02:30):
They need to know how we do things here and
the kind of grit and toughness it takes to play here.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
On the offensive side of the ball. What do the
new guys bring.
Speaker 4 (02:40):
I think we've got Kyle Lee, some explosive wide receivers
that have come in, especially JV. He does a great
job with the guys Isaiah who's a returner, and another
transfer kid who came in from Kent State who was
really really talented. Lorenzo's center, another great wide receiver who
(03:01):
does a great job for us. And this is what
we saw in the in the spring. In the backfield,
you got cold Tab, you got your brown pain. Both
transfer guys super smart kids. Obviously they transferred in from
Stanford and uh and Notre Dame and then a returner
in Zion got and they had a tremendous spring as
far as understanding our system and the great zone readers says,
(03:24):
they run the football and uh j C does a
great job of distributing as well and at the helm,
and so we're excited for the guys, excited, you know,
to produce. We had a great year. We felt like
last year offensively, we went out there and scored a
lot of points and had a ton of explosive plays,
and so we got to continue to carry that out
throughout the year.
Speaker 1 (03:42):
What do you like most about JC French?
Speaker 4 (03:45):
I like What I like most about him is that
he is a stable individual. He's going he's going to
move the change, he can do some dynamic things with
his arm, and he can actually run a pretty good bit.
I mean he ran well in in the spring ball
as well. But more than anything, he's a great leader.
But he's he's stable, he knows he knows how to
just keep the ball moving. Let's keep the ball moving.
(04:07):
And there may be some times that he takes risks,
but they're very calculated risks and and as as we
all know, you got to take care of the football.
You know, I think last year some of the turnovers
got us in the late games, especially in November, and
so we want to make sure that we're taking care
of the football. And that's what he is. He's the
kind of kid that's going to take care of the football,
get us in the right play up front and be
(04:28):
consistent day in and day out.
Speaker 1 (04:31):
What what are you allowed to do with the guys?
Speaker 2 (04:33):
Now we're still, you know, nearly two months away from
fall camp. But you told me off air you're watching
guys run around? Are is that pretty much it? What
What are you allowed to do with the guys at
this point?
Speaker 4 (04:43):
Well, they'll do they'll do some running around, you know,
and these guys we get some time to do individual
work with them.
Speaker 3 (04:49):
So you get some some endie.
Speaker 4 (04:51):
Time with them, uh one on one and then you know,
doing little individual drills with a hand placements you get.
You have plenty of meeting time with them as well,
and so you get a lot of that stuff all
summer long, and so we're taking full advantage of it.
I mean, I know you've seen this this new indoors
great for our guys. It's been a phenomenal, but it's
(05:12):
a great tool to be able to pull some guys
aside and be able to work a little bit of
their individual and work in their hands and combinations.
Speaker 2 (05:18):
Having gone through it as a player, what are these
what are these weeks like for a freshman who's done,
I'm sure a lot of stuff being thrown at him.
Go back to when you were a player, What are
those first few weeks like when you're on campus and
learning what it's.
Speaker 1 (05:31):
Like to be a college football player.
Speaker 3 (05:33):
Everything's happening fast.
Speaker 4 (05:35):
I mean, everything's happening fast.
Speaker 3 (05:37):
You're the biggest transition.
Speaker 4 (05:39):
We tell guys from high school to college is tom management.
Your mom and Dad's not there to wake you up
in the morning. You've got to be in here. You
got Nico getting after you, where all the coaches are
here making sure that you're doing what you're supposed.
Speaker 3 (05:51):
To be doing.
Speaker 4 (05:52):
And then you turn around and now we've got to
be at a class. Then you turn around, Now you
got to go eat, and so learning how to manage
that time and really trying to manage any of the.
Speaker 3 (06:00):
Free time that you have. It's really not a ton
in using.
Speaker 4 (06:04):
That free time to help yourself get better, but it is.
Speaker 1 (06:08):
It is a lot.
Speaker 3 (06:09):
It is.
Speaker 4 (06:09):
It is a lot of verbiage. It is a lot
of where's the woman's on my hands? Where should I
put my feet?
Speaker 3 (06:15):
You know? You know, what are we doing here?
Speaker 4 (06:16):
What does this term mean? How do I get lined up?
It is? It's a lot for these guys at one time.
But I feel like we've done a great job with
that because.
Speaker 3 (06:25):
When we started with the transfer portal.
Speaker 4 (06:26):
System, you're getting new guys every year, and so we
kind of streamlined the system to where, hey, you're meeting here,
then you're walking through this, then you're executing this.
Speaker 3 (06:35):
In a team segment, then you're executing.
Speaker 4 (06:37):
This here here here, And so I think we've done
a good job of trying to get guys called up
to where the guys at have been here for a while.
Speaker 2 (06:43):
Understand thing, Do you have one or two things that
are at the top of your to do list for
one's fault camp kids here?
Speaker 4 (06:52):
I think multiple fronts for us upfront. We want to
make sure that we are sound on those multiple fronts
on what's happening upfront as far as offensive line, but
I'd say overall as an offensive unit, the main thing
is it's going to be effort every single play given
great effort. You got four to six seconds every play
(07:15):
moving from point A to point B. How fast can
you get there? Can you do it with some discipline?
Can you get your depths on your route? Can you
give us extra blocking? And even through springball man our
wide receivers blocking on the perimeters is the best I've
seen in five years. And I might not sound like
a big deal to everybody that's that's not flashy, but
you throw a ball out there and it's getting blocked up, well,
(07:37):
that thing's gone and that's another explosive play. So the
main thing for offensive unit is going to be effort.
It's going to be effort.
Speaker 2 (07:45):
What is it like coaching a unit, coaching an offensive
line without Gavin Gerhardt?
Speaker 4 (07:51):
You know, you start to I think, so you can't
replace a guy like that, A tremendous leader on and
off the field, a guy that's got a ton of snaps,
that understands every single defense and the weaknesses. But he
also understands what we're trying to do with our play,
what every single play is trying to do, where we're
(08:12):
trying to hit the ball where it's trying to go.
And so how he communicates it's hard to replace somebody
like that. But our guys have done a great job.
And what I've taught even when I was a player.
Speaker 3 (08:24):
This is what I've always taught my guys.
Speaker 4 (08:26):
The through sign of leadership is the ability to reproduce yourself.
And that's what Gavin has done. And guys like Terarn
and guys like Evan and in guys.
Speaker 3 (08:36):
Like Joe Cotton and even Exavier Losa Wiki you know.
Speaker 4 (08:39):
Guys like Judea, Nolan Ladelipe, like the whole crew. And
I told them, I said, you guys are got a
front row seat to seeing a great leader day in
and day out.
Speaker 3 (08:52):
Take notes, pay attention to the little things. It's not
just about the way he plays the game. It's the
way he cleans.
Speaker 4 (08:58):
The locker room. It's the way he interacts with.
Speaker 3 (08:59):
The wider severs to make sure they're doing what they're supposed.
Speaker 4 (09:01):
To be doing. It's every little thing. And so our
guys have seen that in all spring and even this summer,
we've seen them stepped up. So we're excited for this season.
I mean, and not just that man defense is getting
after it now. Coach Willie is doing a great job.
Speaker 2 (09:15):
With those guys, sounds like it. I can't thank you enough.
Always enjoy talking to you. I'm sure i'll bother you
as the season gets close, so I appreciate the time.
Speaker 3 (09:23):
Man, well, let's get these guys out here. Don't watch
these boys play some ball.
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