Recap: Cincinnati 70 Northwestern State 0

Cincinnati improved to 2-1 with a dominating win over Northwestern State on Saturday to close out non-conference play.

 

From the very first snap, the Bearcats made it clear this game would be over quickly—and the stats proved it. Behind a perfect day from starting quarterback Brendan Sorsby and a relentless offensive onslaught, the Bearcats throttled their opponent 70-0 in a dominant, wire-to-wire performance.

 

(Photo: Cincinnati Athletics)

Cincinnati wasted no time jumping out to a massive lead, scoring five touchdowns in the first quarter alone, all courtesy of Sorsby’s arm.

 

• He opened the game with a 21-yard TD to tight end Joe Royer.

• Just over two minutes later, Sorsby hit Caleb Goodie for a 55-yard bomb.

• After a quick defensive stop, he found Tawee Walker on a 10-yard slant.

• Then, it was Royer again for a 2-yard score.

• Finally, Isaiah Johnson capped off the quarter with an 8-yard touchdown—Sorsby’s fifth in 11 minutes.

 

By the time the dust settled, Cincinnati led 35-0, and the rout was on.

 

"I thought our guys did a really good job of focusing, going out and executing the game plan, and making plays," said Head Coach Scott Satterfield. "Sometimes human nature says you play down to your opponent, but we didn’t do that. We came out sharp and fast."

The Bearcats didn’t take their foot off the gas in the second quarter. Sorsby showed off his legs with a 23-yard rushing touchdown, and Walker added a 15-yard score on the ground.

 

Backup QB Brady Lichtenberg joined the party late in the half, tossing a 29-yard touchdown pass to Cyrus Allen, giving Cincinnati a 56-0 halftime lead. Freshman Semaj Jones added a 42-yard TD pass to Isaiah Johnson in the fourth to cap the scoring.

 

"Samaj [Jones] came in and had a great drive. That was the first time he's ever played for us, and he looked comfortable out there," Satterfield said.

 

Stat Sheet Domination

 

Cincinnati’s offense fired on all cylinders from start to finish.

• Brendan Sorsby: 15-of-15, 253 yards, 5 TDs, 0 INTs – perfect day and a passer rating of 351.7

• Brady Lichtenberg: 4-of-6, 56 yards, 1 TD

• Semaj Jones: 2-of-2, 53 yards, 1 TD (487.6 RTG)             

• "It’s hard to go 15-for-15 even in practice on air," said Satterfield. "Brendan was extremely efficient, and our receivers made plays. We finished 21-for-23 with seven touchdowns—that’s hard to do at any level."

 

Sorsby added:

 

"We've got a lot of playmakers. My job is just to get the ball to them and let them do the rest."

On the Ground

• 243 rushing yards on just 26 carries (9.3 avg)

• Tawee Walker led with 66 yards and 1 TD

• Brendan Sorsby chipped in 39 yards and 1 TD on just 2 carries

 

 

Through the Air

• Caleb Goodie: 3 catches, 106 yards, 1 TD

• Isaiah Johnson: 2 catches, 50 yards, 2 TDs

• Josh Royer: 3 catches, 23 yards, 2 TDs

 

“Goodie’s got that big-play ability,” Satterfield said. “One was a post, and the other was a designed cross-field route—he’s really coming into his own.”

 

“Isaiah [Johnson] hasn’t played much football,” said Sorsby. “But you can see how explosive he is. We’re just scratching the surface with him.”

 

In all, nine different Bearcats caught a pass, helping Cincinnati rack up 605 total yards—362 through the air, 243 on the ground—while averaging 12.3 yards per play.

Defensive Dominance

 

While the offense racked up points, the defense completely over-matched the Demons' offense.

• Allowed just 102 total yards

• Gave up only 6 first downs

• Held opponent to 33 passing yards (3.3 yards per completion)

• Logged 6 tackles for loss, including 1 sack and 1 takeaway, which turned into 7 points

• Forced 0-for-11 on third downs

 

“Our defense was lights out,” Satterfield said. “That’s as complete a defensive effort as we’ve had. The film will be fun to watch.”

 

Statistically, it was lopsided in every category:

 

“We didn’t even win time of possession,” Satterfield noted. “They doubled us up there—but that’s because we were scoring so fast. Efficiency was off the charts.”

 

Final Score: Cincinnati 70, Opponent 0

 

This was a total dismantling, showcasing Cincinnati’s depth, discipline, and dominance on both sides of the ball. Sorsby’s perfect passing, a loaded backfield, and an airtight defense made this a complete team performance.

 

“We were able to get a lot of guys in today that work their tails off every week and don’t usually get on the field,” Satterfield said. “It’s great for the team culture and morale.”

 

With a bye week ahead and Big 12 play looming, the Bearcats will look to rest, reset, and build off their best performance yet.

 

“I love getting a week off from getting hit,” Sorsby laughed. “But more importantly, we’ll clean up the little mistakes and get ready for conference play. That’s where it really counts.”

 

Dontay Corleone Update:

 

“He had a good week this week. He'll certainly have next week to see how quickly he can continue to progress, and then the game week of the following," Satterfield told media following the game.  "So he's making progress, and we'll see where we're at with it. Everybody else is pretty healthy. Logan [Wilson] came back. Was good this week. Jack [Dingle] was out today. I really believe he needed another week, quite honestly, to be 100% so he'll be ready to go for Kansas for sure.” 

 

Postgame Video: 

(From Gobearcats)