Cincinnati is heading into Year 4 of the Scott Satterfield era with a roster that looks and sounds far different than the one he inherited after Luke Fickell’s exit following the 2022 season.
That shift was on display this week at Big 12 Media Days in Texas, where players from both the original group and newer additions joined Satterfield. One of the clearest voices on how much has changed was longtime safety turned edge rusher Antwan Peek Jr., who said the program is in a much better place now than it was when Satterfield first arrived.
“There were a lot of guys who were upset because Coach Fickell was gone,” Peek said in a media scrum about the shift. “So I feel like that first year we struggled because not everyone was bought into the program, or for Satterfield, and I can see a big difference today than it was Day 1-everyone's bought-in.
We got a bunch of transfers. They're all in.
They understand what it means to be Bearcat, and they're just excited to be here. So I'm excited to see what they can do.”
That sense of buy-in is part of the backdrop as Cincinnati gets ready to open fall camp at the end of this month.
The new face at quarterback is JC French IV, and he’s already drawn praise from teammates for how quickly he’s fit into the locker room. French arrived at Cincinnati after spending his previous college seasons at Georgia Southern, and he said his approach was never about forcing his way into the room with noise.
“Big thing for me when I first got there was to not come in there and be a big rah-rah guy. That's not who I am,” French said “My big goal was to go in there and work really hard and earn the respect of my peers and teammates, and just let the work kind of talk for itself.
As time progressed, I got more comfortable with the offense and the reps and all that. You can start to get that level of presence, and it's important when you're a quarterback to have that confidence.
People can, you know, believe in you to lead an offense and a team into battle every week.”
French brings real game experience with him, too. He has more than 1,700 snaps in the Sun Belt over the last three seasons, and that background will matter as Cincinnati prepares for a demanding schedule that includes one of the nation’s 20 hardest this year.
Boston College comes to town in the first week of September, giving French his first chance to show why Cincinnati’s staff believes he can steer the offense.
Peek and French both offered their thoughts during media day appearances, and their comments painted the same picture: a team that feels more unified, more settled, and ready for camp.
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Bearcats Lineman Sends Strong Message About Cincinnati's New Quarterback
With Brendan Sorsby gone and a new season already taking shape under Scott Satterfield, Cincinnati has spent the spring sorting out what its offense will look like in 2026. The most important transition is at quarterback, where transfer JC French IV has stepped into the mix after arriving from Georgia Southern, and the early read from inside the building has been encouraging. Offensive lineman Evan Tengesdahl has been among the players watching that change up close, and the Bearcats are leaning on a front that returns key pieces from a group that was a semifinalist for the Joe Moore Award.
For Cincinnati, the lines continuity matters almost as much as the quarterback change itself. If the Bearcats are going to keep pace with or improve on last seasons offensive production, French will need time, trust and a room full of veterans who can help him settle in quickly. Spring workouts are only part of the picture, but they have already given the Bearcats a first look at how the new quarterback fits into a unit that expects more from itself in 2026. [Read more 🡒]
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The series also reflects the behind-the-scenes work that often shapes these matchups, with John Cunningham and Minnesota athletic director Mark Coyle helping move it along. Minnesota has been active on the roster front and has shown enough recent progress to make this a worthwhile test, and it adds another layer to a non-conference schedule that already has plenty of familiar pressure points for Cincinnati. [Read more 🡒]
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For the Bearcats, the timing matters because the transfer market is still taking shape and any change in who can enter it can alter the board quickly. A pretrial conference is set for August 4, and until then Cincinnati and other programs will be watching closely to see whether the case opens the door for more players to pursue one more season, or whether the NCAAs new framework holds firm. [Read more 🡒]