The first year of the Scott Satterfield era could not have gone worse for the Cincinnati Bearcats. At 3-9, Cincinnati posted its worst record in nearly a quarter-century, and the team went just 1-8 in its first season in the Big 12.
Satterfield’s name is already popping up on some college football coaching hot seat rankings this preseason. We at BetOhio.com, as part of our Ohio sports betting coverage, wanted to know how Bearcats fans felt about their second-year coach. So, we went to Reddit and asked fans at r/GoBearcats their feelings about Satterfield.
Sentiment | Percentage of Votes |
Positive | 58.3% |
Negative | 41.7% |
For his sake, it’s certainly a positive that a majority of Bearcats fans surveyed still support Satterfield even after an awful first year. However, with a disapproval rating already exceeding 40%, the 51-year-old could easily find himself underwater if the team stumbles once again.
Under their new coach, Cincinnati lost to Miami of Ohio for the first time since 2005, a span of 15 games against their archrival, a stunner for many at Ohio sportsbook apps. They also outgained their opponents in four of the nine losses, and the margin was greater than 120 yards in three of those games.
Expectations are not very high for UC this year. Media members covering the Big 12 picked the Bearcats to finish 14th out of 16 teams in the newly reconfigured conference. Oddsmakers at bet365 Ohio Sportsbook set the team’s regular season wins total at 5.5. The odds for the over are -115, and for the under, it is -105.
Satterfield was the somewhat surprising pick to succeed Luke Fickell, who left UC to become the coach at Wisconsin. In an unusual twist, the former Louisville coach took the job just days after his old team was announced to play the Bearcats in the 2022 Fenway Bowl. He did not coach either squad in that game.
His tenure at Louisville was mixed over his four years. In Satterfield’s first year, the Cardinals went 8-5 in 2019, a six-game turnaround from the previous season. However, UofL followed that up with losing campaigns the following two years. In 2022, Satterfield led the Cards to an 8-4 regular season record, but it ended with a 26-13 loss to Kentucky, his third double-digit loss to the hated in-state rival. That might not have inspired too many people using Cincinnati sports betting outlets when the Bearcats made the Satterfield hire.
Besides the 0-3 mark against UK, another issue with Satterfield at Louisville was that he wasn’t the first choice. Jeff Brohm was the school’s first choice when it conducted its coaching search in late 2018, but Brohm rebuffed his alma mater, noting he had just taken the Purdue job two years before.
Satterfield also expressed interest in other jobs while at UofL, including interviewing with South Carolina for a position he publicly denied interest in. So, when Satterfield finally left in December 2022, many Louisville fans expressed relief rather than despair. To top it off, Louisville convinced Brohm to come home. Last season, while Satterfield and Cincy were a disappointment, Brohm led the Cardinals to a 10-4 record, the team’s first appearance in the ACC Championship Game and an in-season ranking as high as No. 9.
Fore more about the impending season, check out which are the Ohio cities most excited for college football in fall 2024.
USA Today photo by Candice Ward
Author
Steve is an accomplished, award-winning reporter with more than 20 years of experience covering gaming, sports, politics and business. He has written for the Associated Press, Reuters, The Louisville Courier Journal, The Center Square and numerous other publications. Based in Louisville, Ky., Steve has covered the expansion of sports betting in the U.S. and other gaming matters.
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