Cincinnati’s 2026 season already has the feel of a proving ground for Scott Satterfield, and the Bearcats’ new quarterback is drawing early praise from one of the team’s most important voices up front.
At Big 12 Media Days earlier this week, offensive lineman Evan Tengesdahl had plenty to say about JC French IV, the Georgia Southern transfer who is stepping into a quarterback room with major expectations attached.
“Yeah, it's been phenomenal. He's such a great person on and off the field,” started Tengesdahl atBig 12 Media Days earlier this week when asked about French’s introduction to the program.
Tengesdahl said French has already backed up what Cincinnati saw on tape and has brought a noticeable energy to the offense.
“Yeah, he's shown everything he sold on film last year. shown that to us this year and then spring ball and he's bringing a big vocal presence to us. Throughout workouts and stuff like that. So he's leading that QB room and just showing us everything that he's bringing and it's been great,” continued the redshirt junior.
French arrives after three seasons at Georgia Southern, where he put up 5,882 passing yards, 38 touchdowns and 20 interceptions while completing 65% of his throws. His production kept trending in the right direction, with each season bringing a better touchdown-to-interception ratio and a lower interception percentage.
Last season, the three-star transfer averaged 225 yards per game and finished with 2,929 passing yards, 20 touchdowns and eight interceptions on a 63.8% completion rate. ESPN listed his 58.1 QBR at 73rd among quarterbacks.
That kind of stability matters in Cincinnati right now. The Bearcats are dealing with a lot of turnover, including the departure of former star quarterback Brendan Sorsby and 22 incoming transfers. After last year’s 7-1 start, the season unraveled into a 7-6 finish, and the pressure is squarely on Satterfield and his staff to show progress in 2026.
If there’s one place Cincinnati can lean on, it’s the offensive line. Tengesdahl is the anchor there after finishing last season as the No. 6 guard nationally and first in the Big 12 with an 82.8 overall grade from PFF.
He’s part of a group that returns three members, including right guard Taran Tyo and Joe Cotton. Three of the five linemen who finished last season as semifinalists for the Joe Moore Award are back, giving the Bearcats a unit with real continuity.
“We have such a good connection with the O-line group, but us three coming back, it just gives a big advantage to us over every other group on the field, because we just play so fluently together. As the game progresses, we just start getting in the groove, and we can just play with each other very, very well,” finished Tengesdahl.
Cincinnati’s offense finished last season 59th nationally at 390.8 yards per game, and that’s the standard the Bearcats will be trying to match, at minimum, when the new season arrives.
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