Desmond Ridder attended St. Xavier High School in Louisville, Kentucky. As a senior, Ridder passed for 1,319 yards and nine touchdowns. In addition, he led the team in rushing with 668 yards and scored 12 touchdowns. Ridder was rated as a two-star recruit by Rivals.com and a three-star recruit by 24/7 Sports. He committed to play college football at the University of Cincinnati.
Ridder appeared in 50 games for the Bearcats over four seasons. In those 50 contests, Ridder completed 810 of his 1,304 passes, (62.1%) for 10,239 yards and 87 touchdowns. In addition to his production in the passing game, Desmond Ridder totaled 2,180 rushing yards and scored 28 touchdowns on 501 career carries. His best season came in his 2021 season, in which he totaled 3,334 passing yards, 30 touchdowns and only 8 interceptions.
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