CINCINNATI – Head coach Scott Satterfield, fifth year quarterback JC French IV, senior wide receiver Malachi Henry, and fifth year cornerback Jacob Finley spoke with the media ahead of Saturday’s game vs. Western Carolina.
The Bearcats and Catamounts will kick off at 7:00 p.m. at Historic Nippert Stadium. The game will be televised on ESPN+.
HEAD COACH SCOTT SATTERFIELD
Opening Statement
“I am obviously proud of our guys the way they came out and played in the first game against an ACC opponent, Boston College. I thought we executed everything at a high level including offense, defense, kicking, and overall control of the game. Then we finished strong in the fourth quarter. There were a couple things we liked about it. Obviously, being able to run the football like we did, using all four of our running backs. Our offensive line played really well up front. Defensively, we got after their quarterback, which we wanted to do. We traded some turnovers, some disruptive plays, and the two turnovers. We had a couple more that did not get executed, but then our offense took care of the football. Thinking about pre-snap penalties, they had five pre-snap penalties and we had one. That was certainly a positive. There were a lot of positives after the first game, but the biggest positives were getting the win. Now we all have to build off that first week as we head into the second week. We will be playing Western Carolina, which I know very well. When I played at App State, Western was our big rival team that we played from the mountains of North Carolina. I've gone against them many times. They now have this new era, since they hired Coach Bell offensively. They've been really good on offense. They put up a lot of points versus a lot of different teams. When they come here and play our team here in Cincinnati, they'll be fired up to play. We know we will get their best. They have a lot of speed and will spread the defense out and try to create some mismatches. So I am looking forward to this matchup as we play this weekend.”
On whether or not he would have liked to throw the ball more against Boston College
“I don't think so. We were controlling the game. We went into that game not knowing what they're going to do on defense. In the secondary they did do some different things. We did not want to turn the ball over. You start seeing some different looks out there. Receivers thinking one thing, JC [French] thinking another. You get some bad plays. If we needed more throws, we would have done that. We did call a couple throws, and they were far. We ended up taking it underneath. As we go throughout the season, we are going to have to throw the football. We all know that. This week that will present itself a little bit more. The thing about this week is we have two games to scout, which is awesome. Having said that, I still thought we executed offensively. We were only 14-or-18 for passing or something like that, we had two drops. We were pretty efficient throwing the football when we did. We just did not push it down the field, but it really did not dictate us to do that in this game. But, we have to be able to throw the ball. We have to get better at it. This week will be something that I hope we will be able to do more of.”
On the performance of the linebackers
“Particularly Simeon [Coleman], he had an outstanding game. One thing about him is he will go, he is going to go blow something up. He played outstanding. He is just a really good football player. Jonathan [Thompson] was all over the place. Antwan [Peek Jr] was all over the place. It was early in the game, Antwan got in the backfield and had a tackle for a loss early. That is what we want to see right there. Then Simeon timed up a blitz and blew everything up, for another tackle for loss. I think Simeon, Antwan, and Jonathan were making a lot of tackles, they played fast. I also like what we did D-line wise. As far as movement up front and getting after the quarterback. Now that's a tough kid [Mason McKenzie]. We hit him a lot in that game. He kept coming back. Damaine [Wilson] hit him on that one play where he got called for roughing the passer. But that was a big time hit as well. He was low enough where it should not have been called, but it was close. I see why they called it. But if he was a couple inches lower, that is going to be another interception for us. I would rather us play that way, and maybe not get a call go your way a couple times. But we need to keep pressure on the quarterbacks because I think more times than not, that's going to be in our favor.”
On rushing seven guys on a third down
“We had that plan. We knew we were going to do that. So I was like, let's go do it. Let's see what happens. Again, you have to heat these quarterbacks up sometimes. Not every time, but sometimes. When they have nowhere to go with the football, then that's going to be in my favor.”
On inside linebacker Patrick [Bauer] on his performance
“He played really well, he does a really good job dropping back in coverage. He plays extremely hard. He can run things down from the backside, but he also is savvy enough on the front side to be able to cause some chaos. But he did better than I originally thought he could do in coverage because I think he is an aggressive player. But it was good to see. It was good to see what he can do. We will be able to expand his role and what he does at that position. We have Filip [Maciorowski] right there as well, we put Antwan [Peek Jr.] there too. We put a lot of different players in that position because I think it is a very versatile position that we do a lot of things with. But I thought Patrick [Bauer] played very well.”
On the challenges Western Carolina presents to the defense
“They utilize their passing game just like how some teams utilize their run game. They throw a lot of quick passes, a lot of the balls out of the hands of the quarterback, and put you out of space. The toughest thing to do in football is tackling out of space, and so they are going to do a lot of that. They will keep you running side to side, and just when you come down, they are going to try to pop you right behind the defense. That is the challenge they present. They're good at it. We saw what Pitt did this past weekend. They are just a good system, it scores points. It puts pressure on defenses, and that is what they have been doing. They have some skilled guys that can really run. They are not going to sit back in the pocket unless you come sack them. Those are the challenges it presents. So for us, it is all about chasing the football, and staying on top. We increase the turnovers, and now get the ball back to the offense and go score. We are excited about the matchup and excited to get back out there. Play Nippert at night this weekend. So we are pumped. Hope to see everybody.”
On the play of the offensive line
“Absolutely. It's the same thing I see in practice every day. I feel really comfortable behind them, and they're just going to continue to get better this season."
On lowering his shoulder into someone on his way to the end zone
“Yeah, it was a good feeling, but not when I was rolled on top of him by everybody else. It was good to get the offensive line set up pushing me in there.”
On his first game as a Power Four quarterback
“I felt super comfortable, especially when the run game is working. It helps the pass game a lot, and as I said, the offensive line did a great job, and the receivers did a hell of a job blocking downfield for the run game. That was very exciting to see just as we go into this season.”
On Western Carolina’s defense
“They do a lot. We need to be on our Ps and Qs this game. We need to prepare the right way and just get our minds right to handle business on Saturday, not get caught up in everything else. I think that's important for this week's preparation. I think that's going to tell a lot about our team this week.”
On whether he was nervous for the trick play
“No, I wouldn't say I was nervous. I was more shocked that Coach Satterfield called it that early. It was the second play of the year. I feel like we were prepared. We went over it a lot in the game plan”
On if he ever thought his first action as a Bearcat would be throwing a pass
“No, absolutely not. And if you told me I'd record passing yards before receiving yards, I would think you were crazy, but it's pretty cool.”
On his first impression running out onto the field at Nippert Stadium
“It really hit me when we were actually running out there and ran the student section. I thought, Wow, this is something I've never been a part of in my entire football career.’ So it was definitely really cool.”
On his fumble recovery vs. Boston College
“Go get it. There was no hesitation. We harp on it in practice every day. We focus on just getting the ball, getting a turnover. I saw the ball on the ground, so it was the opportunity to go and get it, and I didn't want to let that slip up. So I was fast and urgent.”
On seeing more action through the air vs. Western Carolina
“As a corner, you want some action just to see what you can do, or make a play on the ball. This week is going to be a challenge. They like to throw the ball, and I think we're going to make some plays. We're going to capitalize on some of the passes.”
On the performance of the defense vs. BC
“That’s our goal as a defense to go in there with seven turnovers. We had a couple forced fumbles on the ground. We just have to come up with it. Kenny [Worthy] had the interception, but the penalty brought it back. So the opportunities are definitely there for us to get seven turnovers. We should go out there, and we can do it.”
On staying focused while rehabbing an injury
“I would say it's not that difficult. I'm saying I have faith in my guys who are behind me to step up and make the play or to fill the gap. I’m just rehabbing myself to get healthy. It was just being in the rehab room every day, like extra time in recovery, just to make sure I'm getting back on the field as fast as possible.”
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