In the college football market, a reliable quarterback comes at a premium. But what about a solid backup?
In college football history, Jamelle Holloway once stepped in for Troy Aikman at Oklahoma and won a 1985 national championship. Aikman departed for UCLA.
In 2015, Ohio State had to use third-stringer Cardale Jones, who delivered a national championship for the Buckeyes. In 2018, Alabama’s Jalen Hurts struggled against Georgia and was yanked in favor of Tua Tagovailoa, who rolled the Tide to the win.
Georgia’s Stetson Bennett won national titles in 2021 and 2022 after starting his career as a walk-on.
The Cincinnati Bearcats’ starting quarterback?
Officially, it’s to be determined.
But, when Brendan Sorsby followed the money to Lubbock and Texas Tech on Jan. 4, the Bearcats brought JC French IV from Georgia Southern to Cincinnati just two days later.
French has been rolling mainly with the first-string offense, and if you’ve obviously invested in someone that quickly, you’re likely going to want your money’s worth. When UC held their Pro Day last month, the quarterback selected to throw to Jeff Caldwell, Cyrus Allen, Tawee Walker, Patrick Gurd and others on display was French.
“JC’s playing really well right now,” UC Co-Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks Coach Pete Thomas said. “He’s very accurate and he’s been through the fire of college football games. He’s very poised, very calm and makes really good decisions.”
Thomas has seen French develop a rapport with a group of receivers that are new, plus returners Isaiah Johnson, Giyahni “Gio” Kontosis and Elijah Jones.
Though French doesn’t have all the stats of Sorsby, he did throw for more yards the past two seasons at Georgia Southern, leading them to bowl games in each year.
“He’s started 26 games at the Division I level,” Thomas said. “You can’t replicate that. He played some good teams and played pretty well. There’s a lot of smaller-school guys, FCS that go to a power-school level and do really well. Obviously, those are our expectations for JC.”
The Bearcats’ other quarterback options
Technically, you will hear that there’s a competition, so nobody should be ruled out as a starter. Of this year’s quarterback room, only Penn transfer Liam O’Brien has a college start.
Liam O’Brien
O’Brien threw for 2,376 yards and 19 touchdowns for the Ivy League Penn Quakers. Sorsby had 27 touchdown passes last year in 12 games, with French at 20 in 13 games. O’Brien had 19 but did it in 10 games as well as rushing for 548 yards and seven scores.
“They put me in a good offense with a good scheme,” O’Brien said. “They really crafted on offense around my abilities as a thrower and a runner.”
O’Brien is also getting to know the receivers, like French, but points out some The Enquirer has highlighted: JaVonnie “JV” Gibson, Larenzo Fenner, Malachi Henry, Isaiah Johnson and Cade Wolford.
At 6-foot and 195 pounds, O’Brien is slightly smaller than French but has shown great quickness on the practice field. The 2026 season will be his fifth year of college football and his first in a power conference.
“You started to see a lot more guys take their fifth year of eligibility at Power Four levels,” O’Brien said. “We’ll see what the outlook can be.”
Said Coach Thomas, “He was All-Ivy League last year. He’s just a little playmaker out there. He’s really smart, graduating from Penn. He’s making really good decisions. He ran for a good amount of yards last year. That’s part of his game, just running around and making plays.”
Samaj Jones
Jones is of similar size to O’Brien, but with a few more pounds at 5-foot-11 and 207. In his third season, he saw his first game action last year against Northwestern State and in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl against Navy.
He had a 42-yard touchdown pass to returning receiver Isaiah Johnson in the 70-0 Northwestern State beatdown and played extensively in the bowl game once Sorsby had opted out.
Against Navy, he had 57 rushing yards and a touchdown. He was 2-for-5 passing for 19 yards. Jones received the most reps in last year’s spring showcase and figures to see plenty of time April 18 when the Bearcats wrap up spring ball at Nippert Stadium.
“I think I’ve gotten three times better since I’ve been here, being in this offense two times and also being with Scott Satterfield and Coach Thomas,” Jones said.
He was grateful for the time in the Liberty Bowl in Memphis to show the coaches what he could do, although the rainy weather wasn’t conducive to an effective passing game.
Jones is equally as dangerous as Sorsby was in redzone rushes, but he also might possess the strongest arm on the team. The key to his playing time in 2026 will be putting it all together.
“I know this place, I’ve been in this place and I’m comfortable here,”said Jones, which was his reason for returning for a third campaign. “I know what I can do. I know how good this team can be. All I’ve got to do is take control and be that guy. Regardless of how this battle goes, I think that me and every other quarterback in the offense can play on the field at all times and win.”
Added Thomas, “I think it’s all starting to come together for him. This (spring) is by far the most consistent he’s been since he’s been here.”
Brooks Goodman
Goodman is the biggest of the quarterbacks at 6-foot-2 and 212 pounds and comes from the same high school as French, though French was a senior when Goodman was a freshman at Blessed Trinity Catholic in Georgia.
That high school would not let Goodman enroll early as a 2025 recruit, so he effectively did an “old school gray-shirt” and joined the Bearcats this winter. Through his junior season, he threw for over 4,500 high school yards with 41 touchdowns by air and 13 by ground.
“We knew Brooks was a smart kid with a very high floor,” Thomas said. “He’s done some really good things as a true freshman. He’s been really impressive.”
Will Kocher
Kocher, a 6-foot-2, 205-pound redshirt junior, saw time in last year’s Northwestern State game. From Kings High School, he was 31-4 as a three-year starter. He threw for 4,741 yards and 50 touchdowns as a senior for the Knights.
How many QBs could play for Cincinnati?
“We’re always going to do whatever it takes to win a football game, whether that’s playing one, two, three or four quarterbacks,” Thomas said. “Obviously, you want to have that guy that’s playing the majority of the game. But, if there’s a package for Samaj or Liam or JC or whatever the case may be, we’re going to do it. We’re trying to develop as many of these guys that we can right now.”
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati Bearcats football has multiple quarterback options
Reporting by Scott Springer, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
