Scott Satterfield got the Cincinnati Bearcats back to bowl eligibility last year, and the blueprint for another seven-plus wins exists for this team if the stars align.
Things looked pretty good for Texas Tech transfer Brendan Sorsby and Cincinnati last year at 7-1, with five consecutive conference wins against Kansas, Iowa State, UCF, Oklahoma State, and Baylor in tow before the floor fell out. They’d drop four of their last five (that win being Baylor), and Navy pounded on them in the Liberty Bowl in Memphis.
The Sorsby storm came and passed, and Satterfield landed Georgia Southern playmaker JC French, a senior coming off a 5,760-yard season in the Sun Belt. Funny enough, Baylor and Kansas passed on an opportunity to play French and the Eagles in the Birmingham Bowl last year.
The Bearcats return just five total starters from last year’s team, but return an experienced defense with six different FBS starters lined up between the front seven and the secondary.
Can Cincy Establish a Pass Game?
Satterfield landed two experienced passers in French and Penn transfer Liam O’Brien, and one of those two arms will be tasked with replicating Sorsby’s arm this fall.
The Bearcats return 2,000-plus receiving yards from last season, albeit from a scatter of schools. Isaiah Johnson averaged 15.9 yards per catch last year with the Bearcats, and he’ll likely lead the room with Oklahoma transfer JV Gibson (6 starts, 199 yards). Alternate Larenzo Fenner recorded 1,000-plus yards in eight starts last year at South Dakota.
Notre Dame transfer Gi’Bran Payne and second-year back Zion Johnson cover the backfield, but can Cincinnati continue carving out a place for itself through the air?
Nate Woody is in the Building
Tyson Veidt, now at Penn State, wasn’t in Cincinnati long, but his 2025 defense appeared formidable during the early weeks of the campaign. Answering on offense, though, is another part of the discussion, and through the end of the season, Cincy just wasn’t scoring enough points.
Enter Nate Woody, who comes to the Satterfield staff by way of West Point, where he led Army’s defense for the past five seasons. Returning tackle Marquaze Parker, end Thomas Johnson (N.C. Central), and nose tackle Josh Hough (Cal) line the interior. There’s depth at linebacker with fourth-year returner Jonathan Thompson, and two sharp safeties in MJ Cannon (Bowling Green) and Jasper Beeler (Northern Illinois).
Cincinnati was 30th in the country with 28.9 points per game allowed last season.
Oct. 3 at Arizona
For the first time, Cincinnati will pack up and play a football game in Tucson on Saturday, Oct. 3, in just the second meeting between the two Big 12 members since last year’s 30-24 Wildcat win in Ohio.
It’s the second of two tough Big 12 openers, with Kansas State at home on Saturday, Sept. 26, and a 1,800-mile road trip to take on Brent Brennan’s crew. It’d be a big one to enter a bye with.
