𖣐 BEARCATS NEWS + ANOTHER QB LINK
Cincinnati Bearcats linked with Michigan State transfer QB Aidan Chiles by On3’s Pete Nakos. The only other school mentioned was Nebraska. The Cornhuskers have also reached out to ND transfer QB Kenny Minchey who was linked to Cincinnati last week.
Chiles, a former 4 star top 100 recruit, is a dual threat QB who would certainly fit Coach Satterfield’s system in Cincinnati. It’s not that simple with Chiles though, as he hasn’t shown much with his arm throughout his career. Chiles only has one 300+yd game in his career and got sacked 51 times in his 2 seasons at East Lansing.
Could Cincinnati’s strong OL bring out the best in Chiles? The answer to this question is probably the Arrested Development meme ⬇
⬇ Aiden Chiles career statistics ⬇
Cincinnati Bearcats DL Cam Roetherford announced he is re-signing to stay in Clifton for 2026
Roetherford was ruled out for the season after a lower body injury that occurred during the offseason.
Taran Tyo, Joe Cotton, and 3rd Team All American Evan Tengesdahl announced their intentions to return to Cincinnati next year. While there are a lot of reasons to be down on this team heading into next year this move gives the Bearcats a real chance to compete. Have to have a great portal, but returning that strong OL will do wonders when trying to recruit a QB plus retaining a leadership group to rally the troops in time for Spring Practice.
𖣐 OUTGOING PORTAL RECAP
4 Bearcats have announced their intentions to enter the Portal this past week ⤵
🔴 Jiquan Sanks, STAR, Sophomore, 5’11 195lbs.
Background: Committed to Cincinnati as a part of the 2024 class. Regarded as one of the better defensive high school commits that this staff has brought in due to his 92 tackles, 5 pass deflections and 2 forced fumbles in his true freshman and sophomore seasons.
Analysis: Sanks will likely be transferring laterally and focusing on a landing spot where the scheme makes more sense for his position.
⚫ Ormanie Arnold, CB, RS Junior, 5’9 178lbs.
Background: Transferred to Cincinnati from Idaho for the 2024 season. 65 tackles, 10 pass deflections and 0 interceptions over his two seasons in Clifton. Had the third most snaps at CB this past season with 257, just beating out RS Freshman Daniel James who had 253.
Analysis: Arnold will likely be transferring laterally or down a level.
With Kye Stokes, Christian Harrison, Tayden Barnes and Ormanie Arnold hitting the portal the Cincinnati Bearcats currently have ZERO DBs on their roster that will be upperclassmen in 2026.
🔴 Willie Goodwyn, CB, RS Freshman, 5’11 185lbs.
Background: Committed to Cincinnati as a part of the 2024 class. Recorded 1 tackle in his career in Clifton.
Analysis: Goodwyn will be transferring down a level.
⚫ Mikah Coleman, DL, RS Senior, 6’4 272lbs.
Background: Transferred to Cincinnati from Eastern Michigan as a part of the 2024 class. Missed the 2024 season due to an injury suffered in the offseason. Played the 2nd most snaps on the entire DL in 2025 with 449 (Hunt 498 lead the team) and tallied up 33 tackles and 2 sacks.
Analysis: Coleman will likely be transferring laterally and focusing on a landing spot where the scheme makes more sense for his position in his final season of eligibility.
🏈 AROUND THE BIG 12 & OTHER NEWS
🟡 ASU HC commits to stay in Tempe for the 2nd time this offseason as the Sun Devils fend off Michigan for their HC. ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported that Dillingham has officially signed his new contract. It’s not an extension but drastically improves staff salary pool and other resources. Cincinnati does not play ASU in 2026.
🔴 Former Cincinnati Bearcats walk on RB Victor Dawson wins again and is now heading to the FCS Playoff Championship Game after Illinois State takes down Villanova on the road.
155 yards and 1TD for Victor Dawson in the 30-14 win. Improbable run for the Redbirds.
Victor Dawson and Illinois State will take on Montana State in Nashville on January 5th on ESPN.
🙂 IT’S SAD RIGHT NOW, LET’S TAKE A TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE
💡 TURNOVER ANALYSIS
I did a deep dive into the Cincinnati Bearcats turnover woes since Scott Satterfield arrived in Clifton and it is pretty grim. There’s definitely a positive correlation between turnover margin and our problem with losing close games.
I took a hand picked sample of 13 games that the Bearcats lost over the last 3 years that I personally felt we had a shot of winning if the big swing plays had gone our way. Anywhere from close, heartbreaking losses, to semi blowouts that just didn’t feel like they should be blowouts.
2023
Vs. Miami OH 31-24 loss, UC tied TO battle 2-2
Vs. Oklahoma 20-6 loss, UC lost TO battle 2-1
Vs. UCF 28-26 loss, UC lost TO battle 2-0
Vs. Baylor 32-29 loss, UC lost TO battle 1-0
@ BYU 35-27 loss, UC lost TO battle 2-0
2024
Vs. WVU 31-24 loss, UC lost TO battle 3-1
Vs. TCU 20-13 loss, UC lost TO battle 3-1
@ Texas Tech 44-41 loss, UC lost TO battle 2-1
Vs. Pittsburgh 28-27 loss, UC tied TO battle 1-1
2025
Vs. Nebraska 20-17 loss, UC lost TO battle 2-0
Vs. Arizona 30-24 loss, UC lost TO battle 2-0
Vs. BYU 26-14 loss, UC lost TO battle 2-0
@ TCU 45-23 loss, UC lost TO battle 1-0
The Cincinnati Bearcats lost the turnover battle in these 13 losses 25 to 7 in games that were lost by an average of 7 points per game. If you take out the TCU game then that average points per loss is down to 6. I know die hard fans can look at a number of these games and point out huge non turnover swings as well, typically at the end of the 1st half where the Bearcats have made a habit of not finishing halves strong.
The Cincinnati Bearcats only forced 7 turnovers in these 13 losses. In Scott Satterfield’s other 23 games as the UC HC the Bearcats forced 27 turnovers. There is a clear reason why UC has a horrible record in close games the last 3 years and it’s because they aren’t causing havoc or forcing opponents into uncomfortable situations.
📉 The Turnover problem has been consistent through all 3 seasons:
2023 the Bearcats had 8 interceptions ➕ 5 fumble recoveries
2024 the Bearcats had 5 interceptions ➕ 8 fumble recoveries
2025 the Bearcats had 2 interceptions ➕ 6 fumble recoveries
💡 STUFF
I just shared the Travis Kelce Bowl Game highlights for a reason, as I expect Joe Royer to play in the Liberty Bowl next month. In the first ever newsletter I said Royer would not play in this game, but it appears some things have changed since then.
Evan Pryor has been practicing but it is still TBD if he will play in the Liberty Bowl and if he will return to Cincinnati in 2026. The RB spot is something to monitor for UC fans.
I have updated Cincinnati’s Depth Chart on CFBdepth.com and something close to this is what UC fans should be expecting to see from the defensive backfield heading into the Liberty Bowl. There’s a real chance only 3 DBs who played real snaps for UC this year will be playing in the bowl game. Walk ons will also likely get snaps. Click the picture below to check out my work for CFBdepth. ⬇
⬇ CHECK OUT CHATTERBOX BEARCATS INTERVIEW WITH FORMER BEARCAT VIKTOR LAKHIN AS HE TALKS WES MILLER, BEING BOO’D, AND HOW HE TURNED HIS CAREER AROUND IN CLEMSON ⬇
Thanks for making it this far and hope you tune in for more year round Cincinnati Bearcats insights and opinions. Share and subscribe! E-mail me at [email protected] or DM me on Twitter @BearcatBunch.