PASADENA, Calif. — At 9:30 a.m. on a Saturday morning, there are roughly 50 members of the University of Cincinnati football program on the top floor of the Hilton Pasadena parking garage, shouting at one another.



“Watch him! Watch him!” senior cornerback Tyrell Gilbert hollers as an assistant coach in a yellow vest jogs in motion across a dozen or so parking spaces. Defensive coordinator Marcus Freeman claps his hands encouragingly in response. Fortunately, no one is parked in the area, allowing the Bearcats’ nickel personnel to shift coverage without having to dodge any Hyundais.



Due to all the ways in which college football has become glamorized, few outside of the sport see or think about those fewer and fewer remaining amateur aspects. It can make for an amusing dichotomy, at times: players scrambling to finish their homework assignments before boarding a charter flight, or getting quizzed on blitz packages from the garage of their...