Marian Central grad Luke Dalton leaves Cincinnati, enters NCAA transfer portal

Luke Dalton vividly remembers a couple of mentors from his high school days at Marian Central and their advice with his college football recruitment.

The message was “You never want to burn a bridge with somebody.”

Dalton kept that in mind. After choosing Cincinnati, he called those other schools high on his list to let the coaches know.

“You don’t want to be rude about it, you want to do it in a proper and professional way. Who knows?” Dalton said. “Two years down the road, you’re back in the [NCAA] transfer portal being recruited again. If you left a bad taste in their mouth, they’ll think you’re not a high-character person and won’t want you in their program.”

Dalton, a 6-foot-5, 308-pound offensive lineman, handled his business well and now is receiving the dividends. Since entering the portal Dec. 4, he has been in contact with about 20 NCAA schools and has several offers.

Dalton visited Bowling Green last week, will visit Toledo this week and Ball State next week, and likely will make his decision after that. Numerous coaches who contacted Dalton uttered similar sentiments.

“Pretty much all the coaches who recruited me out of high school have come back around and said, ‘Our offer still stands from high school. We’d definitely love to get you. We think you could be an immediate impact player for our team,’ " Dalton said. “That’s really what I’m looking for right now in the next three years. I want to play. I want to be a starter for whatever team I end up with.

“The biggest thing is do they see me as somebody who can walk in and immediately compete for a spot? Nothing’s given, everything’s earned. All I’m looking for is an opportunity to come in and compete.”

Dalton redshirted the 2022 season as a freshman and did not get on the field last season, although his first year of eligibility was used. He did not see himself getting the opportunity he wanted with the new Bearcats staff. op-10 status.

Former Cincinnati head coach Luke Fickell was hired as Wisconsin’s head coach in November 2022 and took most of his coaching staff with him. Cincinnati then hired Louisville coach Scott Satterfield, who brought most of his staff with him.

“My time at Cincinnati has been a little volatile,” Dalton said. “The coaching staff I committed to, the O-line coach and offensive coordinator I committed to, shortly after I arrived, midyear in 2022, got fired right when I got there. I went through that. I got a new O-line coach that year.

“I asked the staff its plan, and their approach was the transfer portal. I didn’t want to go through that again. I said I was going to go into the portal. It wasn’t the Cincinnati and the coaching staff I had committed to, and I’m just looking to start a new chapter elsewhere.”

Dalton said the staff recruited four experienced offensive linemen – all fourth- or fifth-year players – from the portal last year, and he expected more of the same.

Dalton plans on landing somewhere in the Mid-American Conference and just wants to get back on the field. He is working out over the holiday break with Steve Drain, head strength coach at TNT Athletics in McHenry, and with Kevin Sabo, his line coach at F.I.S.T. Football Academy, which trains athletes in St. Charles.

Dalton spoke with Bowling Green head coach Scott Loeffler and co-offensive coordinator Greg Nosal, who works with the running game and the offensive line, for much of the visit.

Dalton also shared some stories with co-offensive coordinator Max Warner, the Falcons’ quarterbacks coach who played at Crystal Lake South.

With the free-for-all that the portal produces, Dalton knew he would find plenty of interest out there. He should have a new home selected at some point over the holiday break.

“The second that portal opened up, my phone was blowing up,” he said. “I was calling coaches and talking to them. Unfortunately, that’s what college football has turned into these days: free agency. Coaches are always looking at who’s open on the market.

“A majority of the time it’s seeing on Twitter who announced they’re in the portal and then scrolling through your contacts and finding the kid’s number. That’s what it’s turned into. It’s whoever gets lucky and gets seen by these coaches. So much of it goes back to those relationships.”