Being invited to attend the EA Sports Elite 11 Camp was an honor for Hamilton Badin's Patrick Coyne, but being recognized by evaluators as the top signal caller easily surpassed this Cincinnati commit's expectations.  Bearcat Lair spoke to Coyne about Friday's performance.

"They (scouts) said that without a doubt, I was the top guy there," said an elated Coyne.  "Cardale Jones (Glenville High), Cole Stoudt (Dublin Coffman) and Connor Cook (Michigan State commit) were all there too.  The guy running the camp said I could be one of the three top picks to attend the Elite 11 camp in California.  That would be a great honor."

The top eleven overall choices from the seven EA Sports Elite 11 regional camps and the twelve Nike Football Training Camps are sent to Southern California for a four day event later in the year.  If Coyne does earn an invitation to the very prestigious camp, he would be the first UC quarterback recruit to do so.

Coyne estimated that Friday's camp in Columbus included about eighty of the best signal callers from Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and a few other states as far away as Florida.  Since the event started in 1999, three of the finalists have gone on to win the Heisman Trophy (Matt Leinart, Troy Smith and Tim Tebow).

As UC's first commit, Coyne has served as the poster boy for Cincinnati's 2011 recruiting class.  The junior has assumed a leadership role and actively recruited others to join him by announcing their intentions of becoming a Bearcat.

"I want to build this class," said Coyne.  "What's a quarterback without guys around him?  I know Coach Jones' goal is to win a national championship, and you can't do that unless you get the cream of the crop.  I think we're on our way."

In what may have been a strange twist of fate, Coyne was able to meet and throw to another UC prospect in Shaquille Washington from Maple Heights High School on Friday, and the two apparently worked very well together.

"Me and Shaquille were running almost every route together.  If you saw us, you would have thought we've been together for a long time.  That's something you can't teach or coach.  We just made a connection."

Because Coyne is so stocky (230 pounds), people think he's shorted than he actually is.

"Some people are saying I'm only 6' tall, but they measured me at 6' 1.5" at the camp."

Despite a double digit offer list that includes Boston College, Illinois, Minnesota, West Virginia and Wisconsin, a few Bearcat football fans have lingering concerns about Coyne.   It's true that he tossed only 9 touchdown passes to 13 interceptions in 2009, and there is talk of his having a bad attitude while attending LaSalle High School as a freshman and sophomore.  But like most good leaders, this junior has no problem talking about his past issues.

"Last year was the first time I had ever played varsity quarterback," he said.  "I was still getting used to the players.  I had to learn on the fly."

In addition, Coyne's strength doesn't lie solely in his arm.  He is also capable of hurting his opponents with his legs (much like Zach Collaros) as proven by his eleven rushing touchdown last season.

A maturing and brutally honest Coyne admits he has made mistakes.

"I was very immature (at LaSalle).  It wasn't that I was a bad kid, but I was somewhat uncoachable at times.  I admit that.  I tried to do too much, way too early, and it caught up to me.  I didn't deserve to play at LaSalle.  I wasn't ready.  But if you ask my coaches now, they'll tell you I'm one of the most coachable players they've ever had."

Coyne continued, "I doubted myself at the beginning of the year last year.  I didn't know what I could do.  This year the Badin Rams are going to be pretty scary to play against, and I'm going to be more classroom ready."

With a year of varsity quarterbacking experience now under his belt, a much improved attitude and a passion for being a Bearcat, Coyne seems a perfect fit for the University of Cincinnati.