Hometown 2025 NFL Draft hopeful gives Bengals fans plenty of reason to root for Cincinnati taking a chance on him
Luke Kandra is as Cincinnati as they come. Born and raised on the West Side of town, Kandra excelled at Elder High School and eventually returned to the Queen City after spending the first three years of his college career at Louisville. The Cincinnati Bearcats got two great years of him starting at right guard, […]
Luke Kandra is as Cincinnati as they come.
Born and raised on the West Side of town, Kandra excelled at Elder High School and eventually returned to the Queen City after spending the first three years of his college career at Louisville. The Cincinnati Bearcats got two great years of him starting at right guard, the very position the Cincinnati Bengals need to fill along their own offensive line.
It's not the reason why he took part in the Bengals' local pro day Tuesday morning, but the connections aren't hard to put together.
When facing local media after the pro day concluded, Kandra was predictably met with questions about being drafted by the Bengals next week.
"It would mean a lot to stay here," Kandra said. "I live 10 minutes from here, It would be amazing to be here, but I'm very excited to be in this spot to play for any organization."
Coming back to Cincinnati at first was a decision to follow head coach Scott Satterfield and play in his hometown again. The decision may've helped him to eventually accomplish his dream of seeing his name pop up on the television screen during draft weekend.
"It would mean everything," Kandra said of getting drafted. "Just growing up being a huge sports fan, football fan, and growing up watching these teams. Just hearing your name [called], that's what I dreamed about when I was little, to play football in the NFL. And it's really a dream coming true."
It's a dream that is very soon to become a reality. Kandra is widely graded as a draftable prospect and earned a spot in A to Z Sports' Top 200 Big Board. Quality offensive linemen like him very rarely go undrafted.
He will find a home before Saturday afternoon concludes, be it a new one or the one he's known for his whole life outside of three years down the Ohio River.
The Bengals have just one homegrown player on their roster at the moment in tight end Erick All Jr., who spent the majority of his childhood in Fairfield, Ohio. Sam Hubbard, AKA "The Cincinnati Kid," hung up his cleats and retired last month.
Kandra would be an ideal addition to the team, giving the city another one of its own representing them.
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