After Brendan Sorsby leaves for Texas Tech, Cincinnati replenishes its QB vacancy with JC French.
Out goes one transfer quarterback, in comes another for the Cincinnati Bearcats.
Fresh off losing highly-touted portal quarterback Brendan Sorsby to conference foe Texas Tech, the Bearcats replenished at the all-important position. Cincinnati landed a veteran starter in JC French IV from Georgia Southern who arrives at his new Big 12 home with one year of eligibility.
French originally committed to Memphis for the 2022 season, taking a redshirt buried on the depth chart behind Seth Henigan and others. He moved to Georgia Southern in 2023, operating behind the Sun Belt’s leading passer Davis Brin. When Brin graduated, he handed the reins to French who then served as a two-year starter for the Eagles. In 2024, French finished 269-of-410 (65.6%) with 2,831 passing yards, 17 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions. In 2025, French improved his yardage as well as his touchdown-to-interception ratio on fewer attempts, faring 248-of-389 (63.8%) with 2,929 passing yards, 20 touchdowns, and 8 interceptions.
French delivered four 300-yard passing games as the Eagles’ starter, including three in the 2025 campaign. He concluded his time in Statesboro by delivering Georgia Southern’s first bowl win since 2020, upending arch rival Appalachian State in the Birmingham Bowl behind an efficient 171 yards and one touchdown as a passer.
The former Georgia Southern quarterback also kept his ground game respectable, generating 249 yards and two touchdowns in 2024 before improving to 315 and six, respectively, in 2025 — peaking with 85 yards in a rivalry win over Georgia State two-and-a-half months ago.
Cincinnati will see its third different primary starter in four years under Coach Satterfield, after the departure of Sorsby — who agreed to a $5 million NIL deal to land at Texas Tech per On3 Sports. French will receive sturdy support from one of the nation’s top offensive lines which returns starters Evan Tengesdahl (an AP All-American), Joe Cotton, and Taran Tyo. Cincinnati ranked second in the FBS in 2025 in fewest sacks allowed at eight, when Georgia Southern surrendered 30 last year — likely providing French a clearer pocket.
The Bearcats also retain former 4-star dual-threat quarterback recruit Samaj Jones. Jones saw significant playing time during their 35-13 Liberty Bowl defeat to Navy, running 15 times for 57 yards and a touchdown while completing 2-of-5 passes.
On the other side of this quarterback transition, Georgia Southern now has a vacancy. The Eagles have several options at their disposal for 2026, with the transfer portal certainly being one of them. They retain two backups that earned occasional playing time in 2025 in Weston Bryan and Turner Helton. Bryan played in all 13 games as a frequent run threat, completing 7-of-9 passes for 84 yards and three touchdowns while rushing for 111 and three scores. Helton, the son of head coach Clay Helton, completed 14-of-26 passes for 74 yards and a touchdown this past season.
Category: General Sports
