The Cincinnati Bearcats added their 18th commitment of the 2015 class in JUCO linebacker Jaylyin Minor from Tyler College in Tyler, Texas. Refilling the coffers at this position was especially important in the past couple of months. First, Marcus Tappan was kicked off the team then recruit Ulysees Gilbert backed out of his commitment to UC. This along with the fact that Cincinnati loses Jeff Luc, Nick Temple, and Clemente Casseus to graduation this offseason caused severe depth concerns at linebacker in 2015. Adding Minor will certainly give the Bearcats a nice boost at the position.
Plus, he’s only a sophomore, spending just last season at Tyler CC compiling 35 tackles as a freshman. That’s a year after piling up 182 tackles, 57 tackles for loss, and 9 sacks as a senior in high school. So the talent is clearly there and I’m sure with the right coaching Minor can develop into a solid contributor at Cincinnati.
OVERVIEW
- Position: Linebacker
- Hometown: Navasota, Texas
- Junior College: Tyler
- Height, Weight: 6’1″, 240 lbs
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ANALYSIS
Minor does a nice job keeping his pads low when attacking the line of scrimmage. He keeps his eyes peering in the backfield and doesn’t attack until he fully reads the play to ensure he doesn’t overcommit. It’s a safe strategy but he’ll probably need to make quicker decisions at the next level. When Minor does make contact with the ball carrier, he puts all 240 lbs of his weight through him. His ability to throw his body around so unselfishly is critical for a linebacker.
OUTLOOK
There’s a 50-50 shot Minor sees the field as a true sophomore in 2015. With Luc, Temple, and Casseus gone next year, there will be a massive void at linebacker to fill. Whether that’s Kevin Mouhon, Eric Wilson, Kevin Brown, Mason Antoun, or Jaylyin Minor remains to be seen. Plus he could always get his feet wet on special teams. But if the transfer from Tyler College doesn’t get playing time, a redshirt could be in his future, which is fine.