Cincinnati didn’t just beat Western Carolina on Saturday. It ran away with the game, piled up points in bunches, and left with a stat line that will sit near the top of the Bearcats’ record book.
The Bearcats rolled to a 62-10 victory, powered by 418 rushing yards and 690 yards of total offense. That rushing total is sixth in single-game school history and the program’s best since 1970, when Cincinnati ran for 419 yards against Xavier. The 690 total yards are fifth-most in school history and the most of the Scott Satterfield era.
The night also turned into a showcase for Cincinnati’s depth on the ground. Six different Bearcats scored rushing touchdowns, tying a Big 12 record. Gi’Bran Payne led the way with two, while Zylan Perry, Cole Tabb, Zion Johnson, quarterback Liam O’Brien and quarterback Samaj Jones all joined the party.
Payne followed up his previous outing with another big one, finishing with 102 yards on 12 carries for his second straight 100-yard game.
Quarterback JC French IV was sharp from start to finish, completing 21 of 24 passes for 245 yards and two touchdowns. At one point, he strung together 13 consecutive completions and kept Cincinnati’s offense moving smoothly throughout the first half.
“I thought Western Carolina did a really good job offensively in the first half of attacking our defense and just trying to find some ways to move the ball,” head coach Scott Satterfield said. “Our offense was outstanding in the first half.
Four drives, four touchdowns, running, throwing. I thought JC [French] played an outstanding game again today.
He got us in and out of some plays that we needed to get in and out of.”
JV Gibson was French’s favorite target, hauling in five catches for 79 yards and a touchdown. Isaiah Johnson also caught five passes, giving him his highest reception total since joining the Bearcats after starting his career at Western Carolina.
Western Carolina did land the first punch. The Catamounts opened with a 60-yard march that ended in a 33-yard field goal, then added a touchdown midway through the second quarter.
But once Cincinnati settled in, the game tilted hard and stayed there. The Bearcats scored on all four of their first-half possessions, converted every third down in the opening half, and never let the Catamounts regain any traction.
“We got to play a lot of guys tonight, which is awesome,” Satterfield said. “I think anytime you get to play a lot of guys, you want them to play at a high level, and I thought they executed really well. It was fun because these guys worked so hard, and I like the fact that they're able to go out and make plays for us.”
Western Carolina’s early field goal came after quarterback Lex Thomas helped guide a 12-play, 60-yard opening drive. Cincinnati’s defense stiffened in the red zone, with linebacker Damaine Wilson delivering a key third-down tackle to force the kick.
The Bearcats answered with a 13-play, 75-yard drive that ended on a 5-yard touchdown pass from French to Gibson. From there, the offense kept stacking scores. Lyviel Waters caught a 2-yard touchdown for his first collegiate reception, Cole Tabb broke loose for a 36-yard touchdown run on his first carry, and Zion Johnson finished a two-minute drill with a 3-yard touchdown run to send Cincinnati into halftime ahead 28-10.
The second half turned into a full-on avalanche. After Cincinnati’s first drive of the third quarter ended in a punt, Payne ripped off a 40-yard touchdown run, then scored again on a 17-yard run later in the period. Perry added a 40-yard touchdown, giving the Bearcats their seventh touchdown of the night and pushing the third-quarter rushing total to 160 yards while Western Carolina was held scoreless.
The scoring wasn’t done there. O’Brien made his Bearcats debut in the fourth quarter and capped a touchdown drive with an 11-yard run. Jones closed the night with a 4-yard touchdown run, becoming the sixth Cincinnati player to score on the ground and finishing off a dominant all-around performance.