AAC Football

Cincinnati reportedly plans to hire Louisville's Scott Satterfield as its next head football coach.

Pete Thamel of ESPN reported the six-year deal will be announced later Monday.

Cincinnati and Louisville are slated to play in the Fenway Bowl later this month. It's unclear if Satterfield will finish out his season with Louisville to play against his new team.

Satterfield, 49, has compiled a 25-24 record over four seasons at Louisville. The Cardinals have made three bowls but have never finished with more than eight wins.

Satterfield previously spent six years at Appalachian State, compiling a 51-24 record and three bowl wins. He is set to replace Luke Fickell, who took the head-coaching job at Wisconsin.

Fickell leaves behind a strong program that has won 57 games over the last six seasons. The Bearcats finished as a Top 10 team in 2020 and 2021, becoming the first Group of Five squad to make the College Football Playoff last season.

Cincinnati will join a revamped Big 12 in 2023 as the conference prepares for the departures of Texas and Oklahoma in 2025.

The program's decision to hire Satterfield may confuse some given his relative lack of success at Louisville. He'll leave the program with a worse record than his predecessor, Bobby Petrino, and with the second-worst record for a Louisville coach since the turn of the century.

At the time he came to Cincinnati, Fickell was one of the most highly sought-after assistant coaches in the nation. It wouldn't have been a surprise if the school dipped its toes into the assistant ranks for a replacement, but it's clear the administration valued head-coaching experience in the search.

The University of South Florida is finalizing a deal to make Tennessee offensive coordinator Alex Golesh its next head coach, per ESPN's Pete Thamel.

USF also pursued reportedly Jackson State head coach Deion Sanders for the vacancy before deciding to hire Golesh.

Golesh has spent the last two seasons as Tennessee's offensive coordinator under head coach Josh Heupel. He followed Heupel to Volunteer country from UCF, and also spent time as an assistant at Iowa State, Illinois, Toledo and Oklahoma State during his career.

As offensive coordinator of the Volunteers, Golesh led one of the most prolific offenses in the country this season, so it's no surprise USF pursued him for its head coaching vacancy.

Tennessee averaged 538.1 total yards and 47.3 points per game, which ranks first in the nation. The Vols had the country's third-best passing offense, averaging 332.3 yards per game, and they averaged 205.8 yards per game on the ground.

Because of his success running the Tennessee offense, Golesh is a finalist for the 2022 Broyles Award, which is given to the country's top assistant coach.

Golesh takes over a USF program that finished last in the American Athletic Conference this season with a 1-11 record. It was one of the worst seasons in team history, and Golesh will be tasked with rebuilding a Bulls program that hasn't posted a winning season since 2018.

USF fired Jeff Scott in November after he led the Bulls to a 4-26 record in his three seasons at the helm. He was replaced by Daniel Da Prato, who was named interim head coach for the remainder of the 2022 campaign.

As for Tennessee, Heupel will now have to replace Golesh in Rocky Top. It will be interesting to see how quickly he fills the position, with the early signing period for prospective student-athletes set to begin on Dec. 21.

Jackson State head coach Deion Sanders has reportedly "been in discussions with power-brokers" to potentially fill vacancies at Colorado or South Florida, according to Carl Reed of 247Sports.

Auburn also has an opening, although the school is expected to go in a different direction and has not had contact with Sanders.

The Pro Football Hall of Famer is in his third year with Jackson State, leading the HBCU team to an 11-0 record this season for the first time in school history.

The Tigers went 11-1 during the 2021 regular season, helping Sanders win the Eddie Robinson award as the top head coach in the FCS level.

Recruiting has also been a strength for Sanders, who landed last year's No. 1 overall recruit in cornerback Travis Hunter.

The 55-year-old was a contender for several openings last year, including TCU and Colorado State, according to Chris Hummer of 247Sports.

Sanders now has a chance to land another FBS job with multiple teams reaching out. On the other hand, both situations will require major rebuilds.

Colorado is just 1-10 this season and fired Karl Dorrell after an 0-5 start. The Buffaloes haven't won more than five games in a year since 2016, although they did go to a bowl game during the COVID-19-shortened 2020 season.

South Florida is also 1-10 and fired Jeff Scott after he produced a 4-26 record across two-plus seasons.

Though Colorado could provide major-conference experience in the Pac-12, South Florida would be closer to home for the Florida State alum and already have built-in recruiting ties.

Houston head coach Dana Holgorsen said it was "unacceptable" that two Cougars players got into a brief shoving match on the sideline during Saturday's 48-30 loss to Kansas.

Holgorsen explained to reporters that wide receiver Joseph Manjack IV challenged fellow wideout Sam Brown Jr. about a penalty Brown committed. Things quickly escalated.

"Manjack took it upon himself to go over there and confront Sam, which is not the right thing to do," Holgorsen said. "He was dead wrong and shouldn't have done it, and knows it, and felt bad about it."

It was a frustrating day all around for the Cougars. They allowed 438 yards to the Jayhawks and committed 10 penalties that cost them 73 yards. That helped to undo a 14-0 lead Houston built midway through the first quarter.

Holgorsen's squad opened the season at No. 24 in the AP Top 25 poll, but successive defeats mean this is a season that could fall well short of expectations.

Temple quarterback E.J. Warner, the son of Pro Football Hall of Fame QB Kurt Warner, will reportedly make his first college start Saturday against Rutgers.

ESPN's Pete Thamel reported Warner will replace D'Wan Mathis, who was benched after losing two fumbles during last week's 30-14 win over Lafayette.

Warner, a true freshman, excelled in relief of Mathis against the Leopards. He completed 14 of his 19 throws for 173 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions.

"The way he handled the pressure ... he didn't flinch," Owls head coach Stan Drayton told reporters Monday. "He went out there and executed the offense, didn't try to step outside himself, went out there and put the ball where it needed to be."

Brenda Warner, the quarterback's mom, said the change atop the depth chart was made Monday, though it wasn't publicly announced at the time:

The 6'0", 190-pound signal-caller didn't generate a ton of interest coming out of Brophy College Preparatory in Arizona. He was a 3-star prospect and the No. 117-rated QB in the 2022 recruiting class, according to 247Sports' composite rankings.

He chose Temple over Colorado State, Connecticut, Hawaii and Marshall, among others.

"We loved the city and we thought it was the place I could go with high-level football in a good conference, with a good offense, that I could fit into," Warner told Ryan Wallen of OwlsDaily after his commitment in January.

His first starting test will be a tricky one as he leads Temple against Rutgers, which is 2-0 after wins over Boston College and Wagner.

The Scarlet Knights have allowed just 28 points and 457 total yards while forcing five turnovers through their first two contests.

Temple is 1-1 after dropping its opener against Duke, 30-0.

Cincinnati, Houston and UCF are reportedly in talks with the American Athletic Conference about a settlement that would allow them to leave for the Big 12 in 2023 instead of 2024.

Brett McMurphy of the Action Network reported Tuesday the schools are discussing an agreement worth in the "$17 million to $20 million range" after AAC Commissioner Mike Aresco sought a $35 million early-exit fee.

Sources told McMurphy the three programs are "fully confident" a deal will be finalized this month.

A whirlwind of movement started last July when Oklahoma and Texas accepted offers to join the SEC no later than 2025, which jump-started a battle between the conferences to remain viable once the dust settled from the realignment.

Losing OU and UT, its two most valuable programs, led the Big 12 to seek an expansion to 14 teams that it will achieve with the addition of the three AAC schools and BYU, which will give up its independent status in football.

Now, with most of the conference changes having been agreed to, schools are beginning to seek early departures to avoid the multiyear wait times before the switch.

A fee of up to $20 million is no small thing. In November, Russ Heltman of Sports Illustrated noted Cincinnati spent $74 million on athletics during the 2020-21 school year. So, all other things being equal, adding the settlement on top would represent a 27 percent increase in spending.

The television deal is the equalizer, though. Cincinnati will go from $6 million per year from that revenue stream to $26 million annually following the Big 12 move, per Heltman.

In other words, the early-exit fee could pay for itself in year one and then turn into pure profit from that point forward.

Meanwhile, the timing of the AAC departures is going to have an impact on other changes.

There are six Conference USA programs waiting to join the AAC—Charlotte, Florida Atlantic, North Texas, Rice, UAB and UT San Antonio—and three other C-USA teams heading to the Sun Belt—Marshall, Old Dominion and Southern Miss.

In turn, C-USA has added Jacksonville State, Liberty, New Mexico State and Sam Houston State with discussions to also bring in Eastern Kentucky and Tarleton State, though the latter discussions have been tabled for now, per McMurphy.

So, while the wheeling and dealing continues, college sports fans can expect a lot of new rivalries no later than 2025 and possibly as soon as 2023.

The Indianapolis Colts are reportedly showing interest in Cincinnati quarterback Desmond Ridder ahead of the 2022 NFL draft.

According to Albert Breer of The MMQB, the Colts visited with and worked out Ridder and several Bearcats wide receivers Friday.

The Colts do not own a pick in the first round and are not scheduled to select until the No. 42 pick in the second round.

Indianapolis moved up five spots from the 47th pick when it sent quarterback Carson Wentz to the Washington Commanders.

The Colts then acquired longtime Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan for a third-round pick.

While Ryan is set to start in 2022, he will turn 37 years old May 17 and has only two years left on his contract.

As a result, the Colts need a quarterback of the future, and Ridder could be that player if he is still available in the second round or if Indianapolis can find a way to trade into the bottom portion of the first round.

Having a shot at Ridder may be a pipe dream for the Colts, though, since few prospects have generated as much hype as he has in recent weeks.

Last week, NFL Network's Peter Schrager projected Ridder to the Detroit Lions with the No. 32 pick, noting coaches believe Ridder has an "it" factor.

A day later, ESPN's Matt Miller reported there was "legitimate buzz" for Ridder to become a top-15 pick.

Liberty's Malik Willis seems like a strong bet to be the first quarterback off the board, but Ridder may have surpassed Pittsburgh's Kenny Pickett and Ole Miss' Matt Corral for the second spot among signal-callers.

It is difficult to ignore what Ridder accomplished as a four-year starter with the Bearcats. He won the third-most games by a quarterback in FBS history with 44.

Ridder also helped make Cincinnati the first non-Power Five and non-Notre Dame team to reach the College Football Playoff last season.

He put up big numbers in 2021 as well, completing 64.9 percent of his passes for 3,334 yards and 30 touchdowns with eight interceptions while also rushing for 355 yards and six scores.

On top of that, Ridder performed well at the NFL Scouting Combine, running the 40-yard dash in 4.52 seconds.

The Colts will likely have to beat out several other suitors to land Ridder, but if they do it, they will have a high-upside prospect to develop behind Matty Ice.

While Pittsburgh quarterback Kenny Pickett has received plenty of attention leading up to the 2022 NFL draft, two other signal-callers apparently impressed at the combine and got people talking. 

Liberty's Malik Willis and Cincinnati's Desmond Ridder received high praise from insiders after the combine, according to ESPN's Todd McShay: 

With Malik Willis, the one thing that really stood out, almost every single person I talked to in the league, and I asked a lot of them about Malik specifically... they said that his interview was one of the best. Not just the character and the charisma that he has... but also the football intelligence.

... Desmond Ridder was another guy that people were raving about. Talking about his maturity. Talking about his path and what he had gone through as a youngster and overcoming all of that and his football intelligence.

NFL.com draft analyst Chad Reuter listed Willis as one of the winners from the combine, saying he "consistently made things look easy on Thursday night." Reuter added that Willis did well with his deep throws and slants. 

Bleacher Report's NFL Scouting Department also says Willis is a great athlete, has good arm strength, good build and is a tough, competitive quarterback. 

The 22-year-old had an impressive four-year collegiate career. He played his freshman and sophomore seasons at Auburn before transferring to Liberty ahead of the 2020 season.

Willis had arguably the best season of his collegiate career in 2021, completing 61.1 percent of his passes for 2,857 yards and 27 touchdowns against 12 interceptions. He also ran for 878 yards and 13 scores. 

Ridder was also considered one of the winners of the combine after he showed off his incredible arm strength during on-field testing. Bleacher Report's NFL Scouting Department also lauds Ridder for being a good athlete and having good arm strength and movement in the pocket. 

Like Willis, Ridder also had the best season of his collegiate career in 2021. He completed 64.9 percent of his passes for 3,334 yards and 30 touchdowns against eight interceptions to lead the Bearcats to the College Football Playoff. He also ran for 355 yards and six scores. 

Post-combine NFL mock drafts have yet to come out. However, ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. had Pickett being the first quarterback off the board (No. 11 to Washington Commanders) in his latest mock draft, which came out before the combine.

That could change in his post-combine mock draft, especially based on the performances of Willis and Ridder. 

Kiper currently has Willis going 20th overall to the Pittsburgh Steelers, and he isn't projecting Ridder to be selected in the first round. Ole Miss signal-caller Matt Corral is the only other quarterback whom Kiper has being picked on the first day, at 32nd overall to the Detroit Lions. 

In addition to Washington, Pittsburgh and Detroit, the Denver Broncos, Carolina Panthers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers could be in the market for a quarterback this offseason. And seeing as there's no clear-cut No. 1 quarterback option in this year's draft, these teams could end up selecting a player whom they believe is best for their system overall.

Helping the Cincinnati Bearcats become the first-ever Group of Five conference team to make the College Football Playoff was quite lucrative for head coach Luke Fickell.

Fickell told Justin Williams of The Athletic he and Cincinnati agreed to a contract extension that sources said will pay him $5 million annually and run through 2028. The deal still needs to be approved by the Board of Trustees, which will meet on Feb. 22.

In addition to the pay raise, Williams reported the contract "includes a significant bump in the staff's salary pool and comes with further assurances on a new permanent indoor practice facility."

If nothing else, this further signals Fickell's commitment to the Cincinnati program. That is significant because he was connected to the Michigan State job and the Notre Dame job the past two years and seemed like a logical candidate to continue being included in speculation whenever a Power Five conference job opened.

The Bearcats are poised to become a Power Five program soon with a move to the Big 12, and they apparently have their coach for the foreseeable future.

An extension comes as no surprise seeing as how Fickell is 48-15 in five years at the helm for Cincinnati. While last year's undefeated run to the CFP stands out even with a loss to Alabama in the semifinals, it was a continuation of the progress he has quickly made with the program.

The Bearcats went 4-8 in his first season in 2017 before making a head-turning jump to 11-2 in 2018, 11-3 in 2019 and 9-1 in 2020. That 9-1 effort in 2020 included an undefeated regular season with the only blemish coming in a three-point loss to Georgia in the Peach Bowl.

Fickell only figures to continue building momentum for the Bearcats with more recruiting pitches.

With the extension as further proof of his commitment to the program, he can highlight the improved competition the team will face when it joins the Big 12 and likely be able to show off a path to the NFL when players like cornerback Ahmad "Sauce" Gardner and quarterback Desmond Ridder are drafted in April.

Throw in the improved facilities that will also apparently come with this extension, and Cincinnati is trending upward.                  

Quarterback Elijah "EJ" Warner announced Wednesday he's committed to play college football at Temple as part of the Owls' 2022 recruiting class.

Warner, the son of Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner, is rated as a 3-star prospect by 247Sports coming out of Brophy College Preparatory in Phoenix.

Brophy head football coach Jason Jewell told Richard Obert of the Arizona Republic the signal-caller is ready to conquer the challenges of college football.

"EJ is one of the sharpest and smartest football players I have ever been around," Jewell said. "He absolutely loves football and is a student of the game."

Warner held scholarship offers from several other programs, including Colorado State, Hawai'i, Marshall and UConn, before choosing Temple, per 247Sports.

Jewell explained to Obert the Broncos "asked him to do a ton" in their offense and he rose to the occasion.

"He was our point guard. Got us in the right plays and protections," Jewell said. "So happy that he landed at Temple. No doubt in my mind that he has the intelligence, quick release and arm strength to be a good football player for them."

Warner is a bit undersized (5'11'', 185 pounds) but has otherwise displayed impressive arm talent and a high football IQ. He could immediately compete for the Owls' backup quarterback role behind D'Wan Mathis after the transfer of Justin Lynch to Northern Illinois.

The elder Warner took a unique path to NFL stardom, famously spending time working at a grocery store and playing in the Arena Football League before finally getting a chance to shine leading the St. Louis Rams' "Greatest Show on Turf" offense to the Super Bowl XXXIV title at the end of the 1999 season and winning the game's MVP.

The 50-year-old was inducted in the Hall of Fame in 2017 and a movie about his journey, American Underdog, was released in December.

Now his son will continue writing his own football story at Temple beginning next season.