ESPN Names Scott Satterfield to Way-Too-Early Coaching Hot Seat List

Cincinnati is trying to crack abowl berth this fall.

Cincinnati Bearcats head coach Scott Satterfield, left, watches an instant replay video on the jumbo screen in the fourth quarter of a college football game between the Cincinnati Bearcats and West Virginia Mountaineers, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, at Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati. Mountaineers won 31-24. / Frank Bowen IV/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

CINCINNATI — Cincinnati football has paired together back-to-back losing seasons to start Scott Satterfield's tenure and ESPN's Adam Rittenberg views him as a coach on the way-too-early hot seat entering the new year.

The Bearcats are 8-16 in the past two seasons and just 2-9 at home against FBS opponents.

"Satterfield's move from Louisville to Cincinnati got him away from a downtrending situation, cleared the way for Louisville to bring home Jeff Brohm, and gave Satterfield a fresh start with a program entering the Big 12," Rittenberg wrote. "Satterfield, though, is just 8-16 in two years and 4-14 in Big 12 play. Another poor season should trigger a change at a program that made the four-team CFP in 2021, averaged 10.6 wins from 2018 to 2022 and, and hasn't posted three consecutive losing records since 1992. Athletic director John Cunningham hired Satterfield, whose contract runs through 2028 and will be patient with him. But Cincinnati has made significant investments in football after Luke Fickell's run and needs to see results."

It would be a flat-out shock to see Cincinnati move on from Satterfield this December. According to The Athletic, he is owed 100% of his remaining contract if fired before Dec. 31, 2025, and the culture around the program is strong. Wins just have to start coming, but unless a big step back happens a la 2-10 or worse, the numbers say he'll get a fourth season.

There are plenty of reasons to be optimistic about this fall, including the buy-in from across the roster with very few impactful players entering the transfer portal. Jumping up in conferences and making a coaching change at the same time takes patience, and the administration will likely show plenty with the veteran coach. 

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