Ever since I've started doing these "Catching Up To...." articles I've been looking to get some of the grad assistants on staff. Particularly, Ben Mauk and Jon Carpenter who both played. (For you Jesse Minter fans, I'm told he's found a real paying job at Indiana State).

Well, after Bearcat Bowl III, Ben Mauk scrambled out of town, assumably heading home. It's believed he may get involved with his father in high school coaching there. I will make every effort to catch up to him sometime.

Mind you, while he was here on the sidelines this year (and many of you may have overlooked his presence) he was very instrumental in preparing the quarterbacks.

Also, my sideline peeps tell me he played a big role in the West Virginia win. You see, Mountaineers Offensive Coordinator/QB Coach Jeff Mullen spent six years at Wake Forest before coming to Morgantown.

I'm told that Mauk was tipping off UC's defensive coaches on a lot of what WVU was running based on his own experiences with Mullen at Wake.

Then there's Jon Carpenter, who may be as elusive as Ben.

Or, he's just hustling and busting his hump like most GA's do.

It's probably both.

I tried to track him down a couple times in the office and he was out. Then he was working out. Then one day I passed him while jogging on Jefferson, but I just don't have that "extra gear" anymore.

Finally, I caught up to him the other day and it's clear he's still the "go getter" Mark Dantonio brought here in the first place. It's just that his focus now is on becoming a better coach.

"Yes it is," the second-year GA said. "I'm going all the way 'til I die."

That's not surprising as football runs in the Carpenter family blood. Dad Rob is a former NFL player and a high school coach. As the cliché folks say...the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree.

"Definitely...there's a lot of things I learned from my Dad," said Jon. "Also, my brother Bobby's definitely had a lot of success and he's a football guru. That's all he talks about whenever we hang out. It's always football, football, football. Georgie and Nathan (younger brothers) are the same way. It's not just my Dad that had the influence—he influenced all of us—so we all talk the same thing everyday."

It appears as if the Carpenter family has a pretty full plate when it comes to football too. At one time, all four sons were playing. With Jon coaching now, that's down to three, but it's still a pretty demanding (but probably rewarding) schedule.

"Exactly," Jon said. "Who knows what they're going to do now. They're going to be all over the place—whether it's down in Dallas seeing Bobby (Cowboys LB) running all across America to see him. (There's) Georgie at Marshall—who's doing great by the way—they're going to be traveling down to Marshall all the time. And, Nathan has college offers—who knows?"

As for Jon Carpenter, his four-year career as a Bearcat seemingly went quick and now he's on the other side of things. He still is a competitor though and very proud of his playing career.

"I came in 2004," he said. "We went to the Fort Worth Bowl. (We) came in with all of Coach Minter's old guys—Coach Dantonio took over and I was in his first class with Haruki (Nakamura) and Bradley Glatthaar and those guys. I left after 2007 after the Papajohns.com bowl where we beat up on Southern Mississippi."

Unlike many that play Division I football, there was no redshirt year for Carpenter. Mark Dantonio had coached Jon's brother Bobby at Ohio State, he knew the bloodlines were there, and in went the young warrior.

"They turned me right into the 'lion's den' and it never stopped 'til after I graduated," said Carpenter. "I started at fullback—tailback I like to say—I got a few reps in there, a few carries in the games when I was a freshman. Then, that winter I switched over to linebacker because we were short on linebackers and they liked me as a 'linebacker fit'. I moved over there with Ryan Manalac and those guys and we meshed real well."

Admittedly, Carpenter missed "toting the rock", but took out his aggression in other ways much like his brother had done in Columbus.

"The next best thing if you're not getting the ball is kicking the ball carrier's butt," smiled Carpenter. "That's all linebackers did was get the quarterback and go over the running backs. That was the best position on the field I guess for me."

While he was not the same size as his older brother Bobby, Jon Carpenter played with the same intensity and emotion all through his career. What he lacked in size, he made up in effort and it's not surprising to anyone who followed the program closely and watched from the sidelines (me) that he's gone into coaching. He was what every coach wants.

"That's something I was raised with—always give 100% effort—just like Coach Kelly always talks about," Carpenter said. "Those are the intangibles that coaches look for. That's how I was raised, that's what all the coaches I've ever been around talked about...Coach Kelly...Coach Dantonio...giving that extra effort and doing the things that take no ability."

Of course, there's where the Kelly/Dantonio comparisons end as both men have different philosophies and methods in terms of how to coach winning football. However, both have been successful, different as they may be.

"They're two different guys, but they get across the same meaning at the end of the day," Carpenter explained. "They're getting good character kids—pretty good character kids—and they're teaching the guys that they have to continue good character. And, they're building on good morals and stuff that we have here at UC—they're trying to instill those to the players that are coming through to make each a better person."

Obviously, it sounds as if Jon Carpenter has "bought in" to this coaching philosophy and has adjusted from being a young follower to being a young leader.

"It was rough," he said. "It was an immediate move (playing to coaching) and immediate turnover. It was different at first. I think a lot of the players still thought of me as a player and we kind of had to draw that line of authority pretty fast and pretty quick so they knew what was going on. It was like, 'Guys I'm here to help you—I'm not a player anymore—don't look at me to be fooling around at practice or anything like that. I'm here to keep you in check and get better every second.'"

While that was tough, even tougher may have been what happened to Carpenter physically....

After growing his hair out (much like his NFL brother Bobby has if you've seen Cowboys games) Jon had to sheer his ponytail-length mane to conform to the "coaching look".

"That was the hardest part for me," he said. "Cutting the long locks off—that was a tragedy. But, it's the professional look and that's what you have to present. I'm a representative now and I want everyone to think good of UC, so you've got think good of me first."

That should not be a problem. As I've said, Carpenter was a hard-working player and has proven to be a hard-working assistant. They say hard work gets rewarded. For some, it takes longer than others, but I'd say the "smart money" is on Jon Carpenter being on the fast track.

Perhaps when he gets more authority, he can grow the hair back. For now, he's got the "conservative Cincinnati" look that the Moms and Pops adore.

By the way, no sign of solidarity from the older sibling either.

"Bobby's hair is not going anywhere as far as I've been informed," Jon said. "He loves it and gets it trimmed regularly. So, it's not going anywhere."