Scott Satterfield addresses how Cincinnati will handle adjustment to Big 12

Cincinnati‘s first season in the Big 12 is rapidly approaching, and the early criticisms of fans assuming the Bearcats will struggle out of the gates are not lost on first-year head coach Scott Satterfield.

“Well, according to the media, it’s not. Not going to be competitive. Most of [the media] voted pretty low,” Satterfield said of Cincinnati keeping up with the teams in the Big 12. “I think that’s the interesting thing. We’re bringing four schools in. I think all four schools are outstanding football programs. I do think all four schools will be competitive in this league.

“I think one of the great things about this conference is the parity from top to bottom. From the teams that are last year, some of the teams that were at the bottom could beat the teams that are at the top. You’ve just got to show up and play on that particular day.”

While the Bearcats have yet to play a game in the Big 12, Satterfield, who comes to the program from Louisville in the ACC, has already spent the last few years recruiting at a power five level.

“We haven’t played a game there yet, so I do think that’s going to take a few years for that to get engrained into high school players and coaches to say, now they’re playing at the highest level of football in one of the best leagues in the country,” Satterfield said.

Satterfield acknowledged that the transition will take time, but explained that in the current landscape of college football — there’s no time to wait.

“You’ve got to be good now,” he said.

Still, he has found recruiting blue-chip prospects to be a bit tougher than he originally imagined, especially when Cincinnati is two years removed from a College Football Playoff run.

“The thing that as a newcomer into the league, you don’t know the makeup of the teams. We haven’t played in this league,” Satterfield said. “We haven’t played the teams that are in this league, so you don’t really understand the ins and outs of the teams that we’re getting ready to play.”

Satterfield also noted non-football aspects that his program is having to deal with for the first time. Traveling in and out of different time zones all over the country, generating revenue at the level of a typical Big 12 school, but also simply understanding what it takes to play football in a power five conference.

On the flip side, Satterfield gets to sell recruits that they’re now participating in on a weekly basis at the highest level of college football.

“This is where we’re headed, this is where we’re going,” Satterfield explained.

Cincinnati’s first Big 12 matchup won’t come until Week 4 when they host Oklahoma on Sept. 23 but will serve as a statement win for the Bearcats if they were to pick up the victory. That’s easier said than done, as OU is expected to be improved from their 6-7 season one year ago.