Cincinnati Bearcats College Football Pregame Quote, 12/27/2021

We are joined by running back Jerome Ford. If you can give us an opening statement about your excitement about being in the College Football Playoff before we open the floor for questions.

Very excited to be on a stage like this and have an opportunity to play a great team in front of a lot of people. Pretty sure me and my team, coaches, everybody are excited for the opportunity.

I want to ask you how surreal is it for you to be with Cincinnati and to be playing your former team but to be a part of this historic run for Cincinnati against Alabama?

It’s a great opportunity to play on a big stage. I’m thankful for everything Coach [Nick] Saban has done for me, the opportunity to play at Alabama.

But I am a Bearcat. And I would kind of appreciate it if people stop calling me ‘the’ Alabama transfer. I’m a Cincinnati Bearcat. But like I said, I’m thankful for everything Coach Saban did for me and the opportunity to play at Alabama around all the great coaches and other great players.

When you chose Cincinnati, did you have any inkling that this would be a possibility that you guys could finally break through and make the playoff?

Honestly, it didn’t really cross my mind. Only thing I thought about when I came to Cincinnati is how could I contribute to help win games and win a conference championship. Anything else would have been a plus.

We just take it one game at a time, one step at a time. Just get my foot in the door. I didn’t really think much about a national championship or anything besides winning one game at a time.

Good afternoon, Jerome. Congratulations on making the College Football Playoff. Can you talk about how you ended up choosing to continue your college football career at Cincinnati after deciding to transfer? And, also, during the game on Friday, what is it going to be like for you to look across the field to the other sideline and seeing some of your former teammates and the coaches who recruited you out of high school?

Honestly, coming out of high school, Coach G (Gino Guidugli) was a great recruiter for my area. He came and talked to me. I was real high on Cincinnati, but I chose Alabama.

When I entered the transfer portal, I knew Coach G was still a great guy, somebody ‚Äì a place that I felt that I could go when I jumped into the transfer portal. And that’s how I ended up choosing Cincinnati. Still had that relationship with Coach G. And I hit those guys up and they made it happen.

And then as far as looking to this other sideline on game day, it’s a business trip. We came here to play football. It won’t be one of those things where it’s like, oh, my buddies are over there. It will be just like playing another team. We came to play a game and win a game. And we are just grateful for the opportunity to play on such a big stage.

As the season developed and it started to look like the playoff might be a possibility for you all, did you ever find yourself thinking about the possibility of playing Alabama? Or did you kind of intentionally try to keep that out of your mind?

We intentionally tried to keep it out our mind and focus one game at a time. All the play, all talk all year, we just tried to stay close to our brothers in the locker room and just focus one game at a time, one play at a time, one practice at a time, and be where our feet are and be us. I didn’t really think anything about a national championship ‚Äì take it one game at a time ‚Äì or a playoff game.

Now we’re here. We focus one game at a time.

Wanted your impressions on getting a look at AT&T Stadium and seeing a field that they have had Super Bowls on and the Cowboys are playing last night. Do you ever do any visionary things where you picture yourself running for a touchdown or someday playing in the NFL on that same field? What was your impression when you walked in?

We came in for a game last night and it was kind of surreal, kind of starstruck. It was crazy just watching the fans and everybody go crazy and actually watching players play. It was pretty fun. I definitely ‚Äì if I’m blessed enough, I could see myself playing on a field like this in the future.

You had a bit of an ankle injury through the middle of the season. How difficult was that?

It was more of a mental thing. Our training staff did a great job of getting me back as soon as they could. They helped me every step of the way. It got frustrating at times. But, like I said, we have a great training staff and they helped me through it and we got back and we started rolling.

Will there be any extra motivation for you Friday to face your former school?

Every game is ‚Äì I’m real motivated to play. There’s nobody or nothing the team that we are playing could do to possibly add any motivation. I feel like I’m very intrinsically motivated, and everything I have comes from inside. It’s pretty much, I’m already motivated to play.

Nick Saban was asked yesterday and he said he’s really happy everything worked out for you and that you were able to kind of achieve the goals and aspirations for yourself. I’m just curious when you decided to transfer, what goals and aspirations ultimately did you HAVE? And do you really feel like you’re achieving them now that you guys have made it to a College Football Playoff?

As far as goals and aspirations, I think everybody who plays this sport wants to go to the NFL, wins game. As far as my goals and aspirations, it was to go to somewhere and contribute to a team and help them win games in any way that I could. And I was just grateful to have that opportunity.

Earlier teammates, or former teammates like Brian Robinson and Phil (Phidarian) Mathis talked about being excited for you. Do you keep up with those guys? And do you kind of share that same sentiment, enjoy seeing them have success?

Yeah, I keep up with them, of course. Just like I said, they were like brothers to me, older brothers, people that you can lean on and that led you to the right direction. Of course, I was happy to see them win a national championship last year and continue to be excited for those guys.

When Nick Saban was talking about the portal earlier this season he said sometimes players are a little bit short-sighted and don’t think about developing or competing long-term. How much did he communicate that to you? And how much do you feel like your performance has validated your decision to transfer?

I think the transfer portal is ‚Äì I don’t even know. I don’t know how to answer that question.

Talk about the development of your offensive line. There was some moving parts and pieces early in the season but seems like they have really gotten it together of late and what they’ve been able to do in opening holes for you.

Offensive line has been great all season. It takes time to really, I guess, get everything clicking on the same page. I think this season, every game we got better as a unit. I feel like I’m an offensive lineman, too. Those are my guys. Those are my brothers. I just feel like every game we get better and better and better, and that’s the goal to be as close to great at the end of the season as you can.

Follow-up to you guys going to the Cowboys game last night. Did you get any backlash for going out as a group with all the COVID protocols? What kind of precautions do you guys have?

Our training staff does a great job with COVID and all precautions and measures that we should take. To be honest, any questions about COVID probably would be better for Coach Fick (Luke Fickell) and our coaches.

You are in kind of a unique position having been in a program where the CFP is almost a matter of routine, and now you’re on the one that has been the force to break through from the Group of Five. What, if anything, can you share as a message to you guys about ‘We belong here,’ and things along those lines?

Can you repeat the question?

Being in kind of a unique position of having been at Alabama where these things are kind of a matter of routine and now you’re at a program that has broken through as the first Group of Five school to get in, what kind of message can you carry for your teammates, sort of ‘You belong here’? You’re going to prove that Cincinnati belongs in this kind of mix.

We had a nice season, undefeated season. We just pretty much need to be us and do what we do. We don’t need to do anything extra. Just pretty much be us. I feel like being us will be enough to prove that we belong here, we should be here.