Cincinnati Bearcats Football: 2012 Starting Lineup Projection

Even though the Cincinnati Bearcats still have a huge bowl game coming up against Vanderbilt on Saturday, it is never too early to look ahead to next season.

Cincinnati will be graduating 11 senior starters, many of whom have been starting for three seasons.

Replacing those guys will be tough enough for head coach Butch Jones, but with the depth at every position that Cincinnati has developed under Jones, it will not be too far-fetched to find Cincinnati in the hunt for the Big East championship again next season.

Here is the projected position-by-position starting lineup for Cincinnati heading into 2012.

Sophomore Munchie Legaux has filled in nicely for the injured Zach Collaros and is now a virtual lock to step into the starting role next season.

Fellow sophomore Jordan Luallen will likely see time next year in certain sets because of what he can do with his feet, but Legaux will be the Cincinnati starter for the next two seasons.

The long-haired, lanky Legaux can beat teams with both his arm and legs.

He has quickly developed into a solid player and will likely be one of the best quarterbacks in the Big East next season.

Perhaps one of the biggest battles in summer camp next year will be for the starting running back spot.

Isaiah Pead will be gone and there are two players who are ready to fill his shoes.

Junior George Winn has been the No. 2 for most of the season and will have the slight edge, but true freshman Jameel Poteat, who was Cincinnati's biggest recruit last year, will also be in the mix.

Odds are Winn will be the starter when camp begins, but by the start of the regular season, Poteat will likely be the guy getting most of the carries.

Over the past five years, Cincinnati has always had a plethora of talented receivers and next season will be no different. 

Senior D.J. Woods is the lone member of the bunch that will graduate, and the Bearcats will get their top two receivers back in sophomore Anthony McClung and junior Kenbrell Thompkins.

Those two starting positions are locked up and the third is likely to go to current freshman Alex Chisum, who has developed into the third option for Cincinnati toward the end of the season. He has the ability to stretch the field and make big plays.

Senior Adrien Robinson is set to graduate and backup Travis Kelce will step into the starting role next season.

The junior has had an interesting career at Cincinnati and after being suspended last season, he has bounced back and had a solid junior year.

At 6'6" and 255 pounds, he has the size to catch passes over the middle and will be a threat along with backup Blake Annen next year at tight end.

Offensive line will be perhaps the hardest position for Cincinnati to replace next season as they are set to lose three starters.

The emergence of some young players in 2011 will prove beneficial for the future.

Sophomore guard Austen Bujnoch will return next year. Fellow guard Randy Martinez will likely be replaced by sophomore Sean McClellan.

At center, Evan Davis is graduating and his replacement is likely to be sophomore Dan Sprague.

The loss of tackle Alex Hoffman will hurt, but 6'9" junior Sean Hooey will be back from injury next season and 6'6" freshman Eric Lefeld who stepped in for Hooey will likely slide over to fill Hoffman's spot.

The defensive line will be anchored by two fifth-year seniors next year in ends Walter Stewart and Dan Giordano.

Both will be entering their third season as starters.

Tackles Derek Wolfe and John Hughes will have to be replaced.

The most likely candidates are sophomore Jordan Stepp and freshman Cameron Beard.

Both have seen action this season as backups and are clearly the two most experienced defensive tackles left on the roster.

Junior Brandon Mills, who can play both inside and out will be back next season to fill in wherever necessary.

Cincinnati only starts two linebackers and one of them, J.K. Schaffer, is one of the best the program has ever seen .

He will be departing and fellow starter Maalik Bomar will be back for his senior season at one linebacker position.

Filling Schaffer's spot will be difficult, but true freshman Dwight Jackson, who has seen a lot of action this season, appears to be the leading contender.

Fellow true freshman Nick Temple will also be in the mix.

Cincinnati is very young in the secondary, particularly at cornerback and will return all three starters.

Chris Williams and Camerron Cheatham will both be back for their senior season as will injured corner Dominique Battle, who will be coming off his second consecutive season with a torn knee ligament.

If healthy, he will start alongside Williams and Cheatham, but if not, sophomore Deven Drane, who has filled in admirably for Battle, will get the nod.

Sophomore Adrien Witty and junior Reuben Johnson are very serviceable backups.

Sixth-year senior Drew Frey will be back next season to anchor the Cincinnati secondary from his safety position.

The Bearcats will have to replace senior Wesley Richardson.

The two leading candidates are junior Pat Lambert and sophomore Arryn Chenault.

Chenault is probably the more talented of the two and should get the nod alongside Frey heading into the regular season.