Week Four: Houston at Cincinnati Preview

Scott Satterfield and his Cincinnati Bearcats will return Nippert Stadium Saturday afternoon for a noon kickoff against a former American Athletic Conference foe, the Houston Cougars (1-2 0-0).

(AP Photo / Kevin M Cox)

The Bearcats enter Saturday's contest fresh off a 27-16 win in Oxford over the Miami Redhawks. Houston picked up their first win of the season last weekend with a dominating 33-7 win over nearby rival Rice. 

The Houston win was the program's first under new head coach Willie Fritz. 

Fritz is familiar with the Cincinnati program, having spent time at Tulane from 2016 through 2023. Tulane's win at Nippert Stadium under Fritz in 2022 ended Cincinnati's 32-game home winning streak. 

"Willie [Fritz] is an outstanding football coach. I didn't realize he's been a head coach for 32 years. That is a lot of years being a head coach," Satterfield told media Tuesday afternoon during his weekly press conference. 

"He's been successful everywhere he's ever been, and his teams are always in the game. They play hard, they're coached well, they're where they're supposed to be, and he's done an outstanding job. His team defensively is one of the better defenses in the country, top 15 in a lot of categories."

Defense is where it all starts for the Cougars. 

Houston's defense is currently limiting opponents to 3.4 yards per carry, while the pass defense ranks 14th nationally. 

First year defensive coordinator Shiel Wood was able to formulate a gameplan that limited Oklahoma to just 16 points and held Rice scoreless until 1:12 remaining in the game. 

Leading the Houston defense up front are defensive lineman Keith Cooper Jr and Louisiana-Monroe linebacker transfer Michael Batton.

Both Cooper and Batton have made immediate impacts from their positions. 

Batton leads the team in tackles with 19, as well as two sacks. Cooper currently has four tackles for loss and two sacks through three games. Houston's run defense, led by Batton and Cooper, limited Oklahoma to just 75 yards rushing and followed that performance up by also limiting Rice to 75 yards rushing. 

Cooper finished with a career best 3.0 tackles for loss at Oklahoma and added two stops against Rice. Cooper Jr.'s three quarterback hits rank 13th among Power Four edge defenders

"For the first year, Shiel [Wood] has done a great job with their defense," said Satterfield. 

The deepest position group on that side of the ball may be in the secondary. 

Cornerback Latrell McCutchin and free safety AJ Haulcy lead a group that is allowing opposing offenses to convert 28% of their third down attempts, while also allowing just 123.7 passing yards per game. 

Haulcy leads the secondary with 17 tackles, along with one interception, and had 13 tackles against the Bearcats in last season's 24-14 loss in Houston. Linebacker Jamal Morris also returns to the Houston defense this season after totaling eight tackles against Cincinnati last season. 

When it comes to special teams play, Houston's return game has been very solid through the first three games, led by wide receiver and punt returner Mekhi Mews and kick returner Bryan Massey. 

Mews, who leads the team with 11 receptions, had a 75-yard punt return touchdown in the win against Rice. Massey currently ranks 25th nationally with a 22.6 return average.

Other notable receivers for the Cougars offense include Stephon Johnson (9 receptions, 133 yards) and Joseph Manjack IV (8 receptions, 95 yards). 

Manjack has hauled in a reception in 19 consecutive games and had two touchdowns against the Bearcats last season. 

Donovan Smith returns at the quarterback position for the Cougars and has had a mixed bag of results through the first three games. 

Smith, a 6-foot-5 Las Vegas native, completed 24-of-28 pass attempts for 260 yards and a touchdown against Oklahoma but against UNLV and Rice, Smith completed just 27-of-51 pass attempts and took nine sacks with two interceptions.

The Bearcats' defense limited Smith to just 102 yards passing last season and forced him to throw three interceptions. Applying pressure against an offensive line that has struggled to get anything going in the run game should be a major priority for defensive coordinator Tyson Veidt. 

"Offensively, they are not as good statistically, but they can run the football. They got a lot of speed outside at wide receiver and their quarterback has played a lot of ball. He's a really big guy, we know he can run, and he's got a big-time arm as well," Satterfield told the local media.

"Their return game really stands out as well. I look at their punt returner, kick returner and they have a really good return game in the special team. It is a great challenge this week against Houston for the Big 12 opener and we are excited about it."

Cincinnati will look to extend their current win streak over Houston to five games, while also trying to win their first Big 12 home game after going winless at home last season in Big 12 play. 

"We need to feel the energy at Nippert and have everybody out there cheering us on. This is a big-time game for the Big 12," said Satterfield.

"Our whole deal this year is just moving forward, talking about taking care of our home field. It's a big game for us. It's the first Big 12 game. We're playing a team that Cincinnati has played in the past. For us the first Big 12 game is a huge game. I mean, a huge game. And playing a team like Houston, who is playing really good football. They had an opportunity to beat Oklahoma two weeks ago. This is huge for us. And all our focus and attention is on Houston right now.”

Final Thoughts:

Houston has been pretty good at limiting the big play and deep passes.

Joe Royer's involvement in the passing game underneath as well as getting the running back more involved out of the backfield could be something to pay attention to early in the game as quarterback Brendan Sorsby settles in.

Corey Kiner rushed for 129 yards and two touchdowns on 23 carries in last season's match-up between these two. Getting him going early should help open up the passing game against a stingy Houston secondary. Corey seeing 20-plus carries is a major key to keeping the Cincinnati defense fresh into the second half. 

At the end of the day, limiting the big plays defensively will determine the outcome of this game. UC's defense struggled against Pitt but got better throughout the game against Miami, after giving up long gains in the passing game. 

The Bearcats are currently a 3.5 point favorite. Kickoff is set for noon and will be broadcast on FS1.