Tracking Cincinnati Bearcats progress after scrimmage Aug. 21

With less than two weeks to go before entertaining Boston College Sept. 5, the Cincinnati Bearcats now have two scrimmages under their belt.

On Friday, Aug. 21, the Bearcats ran through drills and 16 possessions of various lengths. They scored on half of those possessions, but not without some aggressive play from the defense, which had several sacks and caused a key turnover on the goal line when the offense was trying to add a ninth score.

"Defense did a good job today," UC head coach Scott Satterfield said. "I thought they did a good job holding by the end zone. Great goal-line stand. You can't really simulate that in practice. The defense chased the ball and created some turnovers."

UC Bearcats basketball schedule Cincinnati Bearcats non-conference schedule features Big Ten, ACC teams

As class begins Monday, Aug. 24, UC moves into traditional game preparation as practices shift to the afternoon. They essentially have a bye week, then it's full-go game prep for Boston College, a team most prognosticators will come in as underdogs..

5 takeaways from Cincinnati Bearcats scrimmage Aug. 21

1. JC French IV gets most possessions at QB for Bearcats

The 6-foot-1, 205-pound Georgia Southern transfer couldn't get UC into scoring position on his first four possessions thanks to a dropped pass, a sack, flags and an overthrow on a sure touchdown to Gio Kontosis.

"We were trying to get a little more emphasis on running the football," Satterfield said. "Still, when you do call pass plays, you want them to execute. We had some overthrows that I thought could have been big plays."

French did lead scoring drives on his next four possessions and would have had five straight had Zion Johnson not fumbled at the goal line.

He had the offense in position for back-to-back field goals by Stephen Rusnak, then followed a long Cole Tabb run with a touchdown pass to JV Gibson. On his next possession, he had two completions to Cade Wolford, who has proven to be a reliable receiver.

"When the ball's in his hands, he makes a lot of plays," French said of Wolford. "That brings me confidence as a quarterback to give a playmaker the ball and he's going to make you look good."

French says the team is looking forward to facing someone other than their defense, though he notes the "black shirts" may have something special with their chemistry and buy-in of coordinator Nate Woody's attacking scheme.

2. Backup QB race is not decided for UC, but Liam O'Brien had good day

Quarterbacks Liam O'Brien, Samaj Jones and Brooks Goodman didn't get the possessions that French had during the scrimmage. Goodman's lone possession resulted in an Eric Lemasters field goal. Samaj Jones had a touchdown toss to Gibson, while O' Brien showed great mobility and had touchdowns to freshman Jalen Williams and Travis Henry.

"Liam's had some pretty good days the last three or four practices," Satterfield said. "We'll grade this film, but it's been a battle between him and Samaj."

The quarterbacks have supported one another. When O'Brien hit the first touchdown pass of the day to 6-foot-5 freshman Williams, Jones was among those running down the sideline to greet him. Jones took a towel and made a bullfighter move with it, as O'Brien playfully charged through in celebration.

3. Another good day by Cole Tabb puts him squarely in mix with UC running backs

Just when it looked like Gi'Bran Payne and Zion Johnson might be the 1-2 punch for UC, Zylan Perry has had some long runs and now a healthy Cole Tabb has been a factor the last two days.

The 5-foot-8, 200-pound Tabb burst out behind UC's mammoth line and rolled an estimated 60 yards deep into the red zone. Such chunk plays make French's job moving the sticks easier.

"I think Cole Tabb, who was a little hurt early in camp, had a really strong finish," French said. "That room is really deep. I think they can all play at a really high level. They're going to rotate a lot, and I think they're all going to have special years."

4. Sophomore CJ Crite to be involved in UC Bearcats 3-4 defensive scheme

CJ Crite jumped a pass for an interception and also had a solid hit on freshman Josh Smith. With South Alabama transfer Ty Goodwill out for the season, Crite should get some reps.

He's already on the radar for his strength as guard Evan Tengesdahl gave him a mention on the "Freaks List" by Bruce Feldman of Fox Sports.

"That's love right there. That's all love. Hey, shout out (Tengesdahl)," Crite said. "He definitely put me on the radar, and once he put me on the radar, it was like, man, I got to show up. I have no choice but to show up."

Also having a good day in the secondary was cornerback Zay "Gravy" Johnson, who popped Zion Johnson for the fumble at the goal line and made the recovery.

5. Senior LB Jonathan Thompson picks up another recognition from UC

Cincinnati fifth-year inside linebacker Jonathan Thompson has been named to the Bednarik Award preseason watch list, the Maxwell Football Club announced Aug. 21.

One of the most prestigious awards in the sport, the Bednarik Award is presented annually to the college defensive player of the year.

This is the second major award watch list Thompson has been named to this preseason. He also earned a spot on the Butkus Award watch list, annually presented to the best linebacker in college football.

2030 Cincinnati Bearcats schedule notes

The site FBSchedules.com has UC with a 2030 home date scheduled with Akron Sept. 7, which reportedly would pay the Zips $1.15 million. UC sources confirmed the date. The following week, the Michigan State Spartans come to Cincinnati (Sept. 14). The following season, UC visits East Lansing. Each team gets a $400,000 guarantee for the road game and cancellation by either team would cost $1.5 million. A season opener Aug. 31, 2030, is also scheduled with Murray State, giving the Bearcats three home non-conference games that year.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Tracking Cincinnati Bearcats progress after scrimmage Aug. 21