There are plenty of experienced eyes on UC's quarterbacks as they start 1st Big 12 season

Generally, all eyes are on the quarterback at a football game, regardless of the level.

As in previous years, the University of Cincinnati has a coach leading the way who has played the position in new quarterbacks coach Pete Thomas. However, you can add head coach Scott Satterfield, who coached and played at Appalachian State, and offensive coordinator/wide receivers coach Brad Glenn, who has coached quarterbacks at several locales, as other staff with experience under center.

That's six coaching eyes on UC's quarterbacks.

"The benefit of having all three of us is that you see it through those lenses," Satterfield said. "When you're working an offense, you want to see it through the quarterback's eyes, how he sees things. When you're putting together a game plan we want to make it very efficient for that quarterback so he doesn't have to do a ton of thinking. That way he can see, make his reads and play fast."

Said Thomas, "We have a lot of the same ideas. We see the game through the eyes of a quarterback. What our quarterback can do kind of dictates what we do on offense."

Dual-threat dudes

Satterfield's quarterbacks have succeeded in playing fast. Under Satterfield and Thomas, Malik Cunningham passed for 2,941 yards in 2021 while running for 1,031. Injuries curtailed some of his production last year, but he's currently on the roster of the New England Patriots.

This season at Satterfield's alma mater, they'll retire the number of Armanti Edwards. When UC's head coach was leading the Mountaineer quarterbacks, Edwards threw for over 10,000 yards in four seasons and ran for over 4,300 yards between 2006-2009. Appalachian State was the FCS champion in 2006 and 2007 and Edwards led them to their miracle upset over FBS No. 5 Michigan in Ann Arbor in his sophomore season.

Can Emory Jones deliver?

The hope for Cincinnati is that Emory Jones can emulate Cunningham, whom he trained with, or possibly Edwards. Both were wildly successful, thanks to their legs.

"Malik was a freak athlete and did some things really well," Thomas said. "Emory is a really good athlete with a little different skill set. They can do a lot of the same stuff. We're really excited about Emory."

Jones had his best season in 2021, his last with Florida when he threw for over 2,700 yards with 19 touchdowns while rushing for 759 yards and four scores.

Thomas can relate to Jones, who is now at his third school after spending four years at Florida and one at Arizona State before becoming a Bearcat. Thomas started 21 games at Colorado State, six more at North Carolina State and then wrapped up his playing career at Louisiana-Monroe.

"I was the transfer portal before the transfer portal," Thomas joked. "When I was recruiting Emory, that was an immediate connection, that I had a similar experience to him."

What about Brady Lichtenberg?

Known for his arm, redshirt sophomore Lichtenberg is in his third season at UC with a stat line of 1-for-2 passing for 5 yards against Kennesaw State.

Still, he threw for over 9,000 yards at Toledo St. John's Jesuit with 87 touchdowns prior to UC.

"He's a very cerebral guy that throws a great ball and he can move a little bit as well," Thomas said. "These are the first true reps he's gotten the last couple of years. He's just having fun playing football again and you can see the growth."

Will true freshman Brady Drogosh get a shot?

Brady Drogosh, a four-star recruit ranked the top player in Michigan, was recruited by Luke Fickell's staff and stayed on during the coaching switch to Scott Satterfield. At 6-feet-4 and 215 pounds, he was the only quarterback allowed to go "live" during the spring game and responded with a big run and a touchdown pass to fellow freshman Barry Jackson Jr.

Drogosh has continued to impress this summer and highlighted a recent scrimmage with a 99-yard touchdown run where the defensive backs couldn't catch him. As a senior at Warren De La Salle, he threw for 2,264 yards and ran for 1,340 as Michigan's Mr. Football.

"Drogosh is a young pup who is super talented," Thomas said. "He's got all the stuff that you can't coach: size, speed, arm strength, all that stuff. A lot of this is new to him but he's a very, very talented kid."

Satterfield's bottom line?

"Really, truly I think about three quarterbacks (who) can go out there and help us win," Satterfield said. "I'm excited about what we have on offense. We don't know the true identity yet. Let's see how this unfolds and see what we're able to do."

Pete Thomas has met rock royalty through football

Post-college, Thomas tried his hand at indoor football and in 2016 he threw for over 2,000 yards and 43 touchdowns in the Arena Football League. The San Diego native played for the L.A. Kiss, which was owned by the founding members of the rock group of the same name.

"I had no idea what I was getting into!" Thomas said. "First game, you come back in the locker room and there's Gene Simmons and the whole Kiss band just hanging out with no makeup on. I got some pictures. It was pretty cool."

Thomas and his band of Bearcat quarterbacks will play Saturday, Sept. 2, in the opener against Eastern Kentucky.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: UC's quarterbacks benefit from several coaches well-versed at position