Luke Kandra's call to former Elder teammate Joe Royer helps make him a Cincinnati Bearcat

A phone call from a friend in December helped the Cincinnati Bearcats football team land who head coach Scott Satterfield sees as "one of the top tight ends in the Big 12, if not the country."

Joe Royer, formerly of Ohio State and Elder High School, barely had his name submitted in the transfer portal when UC offensive lineman Luke Kandra called with the sales pitch. In purple solidarity, the two west-siders became teammates again when Royer made his transfer back to Cincinnati official on Jan. 8.

This spring, the former Panthers, now Bearcats were back on the west side representing UC football on the "Ball and Brew" tour at Bucketheads on Harrison Avenue. Both are attracted like magnets to their old stomping grounds

The 'Cat signal

Elder High School has a Purple Pages service where former Panthers can connect for a variety of professional services. That was unnecessary as Kandra knew exactly where to find UC a tight end to replace the departed Chamon Metayer.

Royer has been redshirted, suffered injuries and had to deal with Ohio State's depth. The unfortunate death of his mother was also a factor in his time in Columbus. Still, he was a four-star prospect coming out of Elder and had added some 30 pounds to his 6-foot-5 frame. He did play 28 snaps in the Buckeyes 2022 College Football Playoff Semifinal against Georgia with a reception.

"I was the first call," Kandra proudly said. "As soon as I saw his name enter the portal I said I'm calling him right away. He answered and we talked. It was real easy."

Royer confirmed the call came quickly after entering his name.

Just a few years before on Signing Day, Kandra went to Louisville to play for Satterfield while Royer and teammate Jakob James became Buckeyes. In 2019, the trio appeared on an Enquirer high school video . Royer and Kandra have been friends since they played against one another in competing grade-school programs. Luke Kandra has a twin (Collin, Mount St. Joseph offensive lineman) and Royer mentioned with his size and big hair he was often called "the third Kandra".

Royer visited Tennessee but didn't need much convincing to come home and sport red and black.

"Very little," Kandra said. "I think he knew he was coming here either way. There was no real concern for him going anywhere else."

Royer agreed that he was leaning toward a move south down Interstate 71 but the push from family and friends made the decision easier.

Can Royer return to GCL numbers?

Royer led the Greater Catholic League-South in receiving yards in 2019 with 70 catches for 1,258 yards and 15 touchdowns playing on Elder's Division I state runner-up team that finished 12-3. As a junior playing in 11 of Elder's 13 games, he had 32 catches for 617 yards and five scores.

"He's a very talented player and I'm real excited to play with him again," Kandra said.

A dream come true for Royer

"I was brought up on the west side of Cincinnati," Royer said. "I spent some time away up in Columbus but it feels great to be back. I remember coming here (Bucketheads) all the time coming up, so it's a surreal experience."

Royer says he's motivated to have a second opportunity in his own backyard. He has played in Nippert before in a game against Moeller.

"It was really cool playing there and I'm super excited to be able to do it this fall," Royer said. "The Pit's a special place and Nippert is as well. I'm blessed and excited that I get the chance to play in both of them."

UC's next tight end draftee?

Royer has two years of eligibility but at 6-foot-5 and 255 pounds with wide receiver skills, he could be the next Bearcat tight end to go to the NFL if he remains healthy. In the Greater Catholic League-South, he had more receptions than former UC tight end Josh Whyle, a 6-foot-7 product out of La Salle. Whyle turned into a weapon for the Bearcats and was a 2023 fifth-round pick of the Tennessee Titans.

"That's a great example to look after," Royer said. "He did great things at La Salle and UC and now he's with the Titans. He's a great role model. He really paints the picture of what you want a UC tight end to be."

A picture is worth . . .

When they played at Elder, Kandra was once photographed lifting Royer in the air after a touchdown. It's something the pair would like to replicate as Bearcats. Even though Royer has added 30 pounds since his days in The Pit, he thinks the top guard according to Pro Football Focus is up to the task.

"He's gotten even bigger and stronger, I'm not sure who he couldn't lift up!" Royer said.

An improved tight end room

Despite losing last year's starter Metayer, first to Colorado, then to Arizona State and backup Payten Singletary to USF, Coach Satterfield is on record as saying the 2024 tight end position is better.

In addition to Royer, UC has Western Kentucky transfer Joey Beljan who sat out last season after tearing an ACL in spring practice a year ago. Beljan was back making plays with Royer this spring.

And there's more.

"The young guys (early enrollees Gavin Grover, Devyn Zahursky) had a really good spring," Satterfield said. "They'll play for us this year. Then we were able to get Francis Sherman (recently of Arkansas) a guy who played for us at Louisville. He's going to add to the mix. We've got to stay healthy. That's one position last year where we had some injuries that hurt us. Hopefully, we have enough depth. We like to play 11 and 12-personnel. As we head into the summer we feel good about that position."

The Bearcats begin official practice for the 2024 season at the end of the month and will soon be at Camp Higher Ground in West Harrison, Indiana for their second training camp under Scott Satterfield.

"I love the guys in that room," Satterfield said at Big 12 media days in Las Vegas. "I'm excited about Joe. We'll utilize the tight ends. We'll pretty much have a tight end on the field at all times and a lot of times we'll have two or three. Joe can play that wideout. It's a different kind of matchup for DBs against a big body like that. We'll be able to utilize him in a lot of different scenarios."

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Luke Kandra's call to former Elder teammate Joe Royer helps make him a Cincinnati Bearcat