Dontay Corleone

● Broad, sturdy frame and comfortable carrying a lot of weight ● Above-average strength with a stout base ● Built naturally low to the ground and can leverage blocks ● Holds up versus double teams by corkscrewing and putting down roots ● Can get vertical out of stance and disrupt backfield plan ● Controlled mover with strong hands to break down in confined spaces ● Generates push versus single blocks to grind his way to the pocket ● Voted a 2025 team captain (Corleone: “When adversity comes, you can rely on me to raise the spirits.”) ● Close with training staff and deeply invests in physical therapy (routine is important for him)

● Short with doughy upper half and needs to monitor his weight ● Exceeded 365 pounds during the pandemic as a high school senior ● Not a rangy player who will make plays up and down the line ● Hard to find quality pass-rush reps on his tape ● Too many “almost” tackles on tape, often because of his shorter arms ● Doesn’t consistently reset the line of scrimmage with knockback power ● Medical exam for back pain prior to the 2024 season revealed blood clots in one lung — he overcame the issue and was medically cleared; missed final two games of redshirt freshman season because of left knee injury (Nov. 2022); missed two games of final season because of left ankle injury (Oct. 2025), and reaggravated that injury during East-West Shrine practices (Jan. 2026); tightrope surgery on left ankle (March 2026) and was unable to work out at pro day

A three-year starter at Cincinnati, Corleone played zero-technique in base and slid to one-/2i-/three-technique in subpackages in defensive coordinator Tyson Veidt’s scheme. With his teddy-bear personality and ties to the city of Cincinnati, “The Godfather” became the face of the program and a feel-good story because of the way he overcame setbacks in his career, specifically blood clots in 2024. 438 Back to table of contents -- 442 of 629 -- A short, stocky nose, Corleone is naturally strong and stays grounded to create torque and make it tough to move him from his spot. He is almost always the low man at contact, but he doesn’t gain much ground with his first step. His weight and stamina need to be closely monitored (averaged just 35.2 defensive snaps per game in 2025). Overall, Corleone is a space-eater with outstanding point-of-attack strength, although he doesn’t offer much as a pass rusher. He projects as a backup nose tackle in the NFL.