For UCF and Cincinnati, teams accustomed to being the top dogs in the American Athletic Conference, the 2023 inaugural Big 12 season has been a wake-up call of sorts.
The Knights and Bearcats both hold 0-5 conference records entering Saturday's game at Nippert Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. on FS1.
For our preview, we caught up with Russ Heltman, publisher of All Bearcats and host of Bearcat Blitz.
As Russ pointed out, somebody is going to break a losing streak this weekend. UCF won their three non-conference games prior to the five-game Big 12 skid. Cincinnati also has a loss to in-state rival Miami (Ohio), so it's a six-game losing streak for them.
This is a transitionary year for the Bearcats. Luke Fickell was the coach in Clifton Heights for six seasons, leading the Bearcats to back-to-back conference championships in 2020 and 2021 and a College Football Playoff appearance in 2021. He departed for Wisconsin last year.
Cincinnati turned to Scott Satterfield, who was coaching down the road at Louisville.
"The brutally honest reaction (from the Cincinnati fanbase) is people were not that thrilled about the hire," Heltman said. "I'd say tepid to upset, to say the least. I think (fans felt) Fickell left them high and dry going into a new conference in a NIL landscape where you can get your guys plucked away in the transfer portal. 10 of the 11 (offensive) starters left in some form or fashion going into 2023.
"When you look at Scott Satterfield, he's unfortunately missed the boat on the most important big decision he's had so far and that's the quarterback he chose in the transfer portal," Heltman said.
That would be Emory Jones, who spent four years at Florida and then last season at Arizona State. He was the starting quarterback when UCF beat the Gators in the 2021 Gasparilla Bowl.
"To cut (Satterfield) some slack, there were limited options in terms of top-tier guys in the portal he could go after and the timing in which he was hired," Heltman said. "Emory Jones just has not been good enough as a passer. Efficiency wise, he's been one of the bottom 25 quarterbacks in the country.
"It was a really bad quarterback room for this program going into this season and that has hamstrung what they want to do on offense. Satterfield's patented rushing attack with the wide-zone scheme has been fantastic. They're top 20 nationally in almost every statistic running the football, probably outside of rushing touchdowns.
"They've done a good job getting an offensive line that can run the football. A line that can decently pass block. The receivers have also disappointed. They are not getting open enough.
"And Emory Jones just hasn't been good enough. He's now been benched four times in the past two seasons. Twice at Arizona State and twice at UC."
Backup Brady Lichtenberg replaced Emory Jones during the fourth quarter of last week's 45-13 loss at Oklahoma State. Satterfield has been vague about which quarterback will start against UCF. Heltman said the fanbase is ready to move on from Emory Jones.
"Brady is definitely more pro style," Heltman said. "I think we'd see a lot less runs from RPO if he plays, but I could still see him carrying the ball 8-10 times and keep you honest with his feet. He has some agility to him, he's pretty strong, he's big and tall... He has good zip on the ball... He's a better passer for sure, though UC will probably be close to 75 percent running the football."
As for the running back position, Heltman described Myles Montgomery as lightning compared to Corey Kiner's thunder. Kiner is the overall leading rusher, averaging 80.25 yards per game.
Xzavier Henderson leads Cincinnati in receiving with 42 catches for 578 yards and three touchdowns.
Heltman feels the offensive line is decent with the strongest players being the guards and center. The best player being right guard Luke Kandra, a transfer from Louisville. The tackles have had issues with pass protection.
Defensively, the strength is the defensive line while safety play is also improving. The best overall player is likely defensive tackle Dontay Corleone.
The biggest issue has been at cornerback which Heltman described as "brutal."
"Jordan Young was supposed to be their premier cornerback coming out of the portal. He was a backup at Florida and had played fairly well in limited snaps in SEC football, but has been getting cooked all season long. He's in the 300s in PFF's overall grades among all FBS cornerbacks this season. He's played decently the last couple weeks, but is giving up too many catches. Too many explosive yards allowed.
"Then Justin Harris on the other side (who took over due to injury). Satterfield said during the preseason cornerback was a very thin position for this team. Harris hasn't been good enough. He just had his worst game of his entire career by PFF grading, 36.9 grade. He gave up two catches for 96 yards. It's been stuff like that all season long."
At 2-6 overall, Cincinnati would need to win all four of their remaining games vs. UCF, Houston, West Virginia and Kansas to become bowl eligible. The Bearcats had reached a bowl in 10 of the last 12 seasons.
Heltman talked about ongoing facility improvements on campus, which includes an indoor football practice facility and performance center which is slated to open next year.
For UCF fans making the trip, Heltman recommends a trip to the Cincinnati Zoo which is adjacent to campus.
Everybody knows about Cincinnati chili and Heltman is a fan of Skyline, even over several mom & pop options.
He also recommends Taste of Belgium, which has several locations around the Cincinnati area. For an upscale experience, Jeff Ruby's Steakhouse. On the Kentucky side of the river, he likes Libby's Southern Comfort and Otto's in Covington.
