Former Loveland state champ QB Plitt makes most of Cincinnati Bengals connections in XFL

On July 27, former Loveland High School standout quarterback Drew Plitt was signed by the Cincinnati Bengals as an undrafted free agent out of Ball State. Less than a month later on Aug. 23, he was waived but not without having a moment to remember in his hometown.

On Aug. 12 in a preseason loss to Arizona, Plitt took the field and directed a scoring drive that saw him complete 6-of-7 passes for 76 yards. The last one was a 25-yard scoring pass to Kendric Pryor (now of the Jacksonville Jaguars).

It was the only touchdown pass thrown by a Bengal that night and it came with his parents Julie and Steve Plitt in the audience, just as they were for his Ball State Cardinal games and just as they were during his three-year run as Loveland's starter.

Now, the Plitts may have to invest in some western wear as their 24-year-old son was selected in Tuesday's XFL quarterback draft. Plitt is now a member of the Arlington Renegades, playing just outside of Dallas. His coach is former Oklahoma Sooner chief Bob Stoops who won a Bowl Championship Series national title at the 2001 Orange Bowl.

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The draft was held in Las Vegas where Plitt spoke in between workouts and meetings.

"I guess I'll take a free trip to Vegas, right?" Plitt said. "I got a call a week or two after I got cut (from Bengals) from a player personnel guy here. I was at an XFL Showcase right before I went to the Bengals. He said they were going to be choosing me."

Stoops may have had some local advice as former Bengals assistants Jonathan and Jay Hayes are on the Renegades staff. Jonathan Hayes is the father of Jaxson Hayes of the NBA New Orleans Pelicans who prepped at Moeller High School. Plus, in between his Bengals stint and the XFL draft, Plitt trained in California with Jordan Palmer, himself a former Bengal and brother of one-time starter Carson Palmer.

"They sent us out to LA at the end of September and he (Palmer) is out here with us in Vegas," Plitt said. "His training style is a little bit different. It's more from a kinesiology basis and being more efficient with your movement. It's a pretty, cool interesting way to look at a position."

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In 2021 at Ball State, Plitt threw for 2,541 yards and 18 touchdowns. During the 2020 pandemic season, he was the offensive MVP of the Mid-American Conference championship game and MVP of the Arizona Bowl as the Cardinals beat No. 22 San Jose State in their first-ever bowl game. His redshirt junior season of 2019 saw him throw for 2,918 yards and 24 scores.

The 6-foot-2-inch, 205-pound Plitt is best known at Loveland for becoming the starting quarterback as a sophomore of the 2013 team that went 15-0 and defeated Cleveland Glenville in the snow in Canton for the school's first state football title. Although he threw just five passes in the school's Wing-T offense, he completed all five including two for touchdowns.

Plitt now joins former Northern Colorado quarterback Kyle Sloter as the first two Renegades in the XFL reboot. In addition to college legend Stoops, he met XFL co-owner Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson of pro wrestling and Hollywood fame (and a former college player for the Miami Hurricanes). His ex-wife, Dany Garcia is the league's chairwoman/owner.

"We are excited to add Drew Plitt to the Arlington Renegades.," Stoops told XFL.com. "Drew had an impressive college career at Ball State and performed well in training camp this year with the Cincinnati Bengals. We look forward to seeing what he can do in the XFL."

Said Plitt, "It's such a great opportunity to be able to learn from him (Stoops). He's a great coach, he's been around for so long and has a lot of connections. The league's in a great spot with the guys that they have as coaches and positional coaches. They can really take it somewhere and make it more of a developmental league for the NFL."

Like many, Plitt hopes to use the league as a springboard to return to the NFL. The preseason touchdown drive was incentive enough to continue. The touchdown ball is proudly displayed in his apartment.

"I got to put that one up," he said. "I don't think my fíance was going to deny that."

Plitt just became engaged on Sunday, flew out Monday and was drafted Tuesday.

The Arlington Renegades will play in Choctaw Stadium, formerly the baseball home of the Texas Rangers. It has since been retrofitted for soccer and football. It opened in 1994 as the Ballpark at Arlington. The XFL campaign begins Feb. 18, 2023.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: XFL 2023 QB Drew Plitt with Arlington Renegades is from Cincinnati