Cincinnati Bearcats Football Adds Fourth Commitment in 2027 Class

Warren (Ohio) offensive lineman Zay'Vion Smith commits to Cincinnati

Apr. 2, 2026 at 10:35am

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The Cincinnati Bearcats football program has landed a fourth commitment for their 2027 recruiting class, securing a pledge from unranked offensive lineman Zay'Vion Smith out of Warren, Ohio. Smith chose Cincinnati over offers from Iowa State, Marshall, Connecticut, and Youngstown State.

Why it matters

The Bearcats are building momentum on the recruiting trail for their 2027 class, adding a third offensive line commitment in Smith to go along with their previous three pledges. This continues to strengthen Cincinnati's offensive front as they look to protect projected starting quarterback JC French IV in the coming seasons.

The details

At 6-foot-5 and 260 pounds, Smith is an unranked offensive line prospect who will now join Cincinnati's offensive line room led by coach Nic Cardwell. Cardwell has taken on additional responsibilities as co-offensive coordinator, but the Bearcats' offensive line coach says the added duties have only brought the offense closer together through more team meetings and film sessions.

  • On Wednesday night, Zay'Vion Smith announced his commitment to Cincinnati for the 2027 class.

The players

Zay'Vion Smith

A 6-foot-5, 260-pound offensive lineman from Warren, Ohio who is unranked but chose Cincinnati over several other offers.

Nic Cardwell

The Cincinnati Bearcats' offensive line coach who has also taken on co-offensive coordinator duties, helping to bring the offense closer together through increased team meetings and film sessions.

JC French IV

The projected starting quarterback for the Cincinnati Bearcats, who impressed during the team's recent Pro Day workouts.

Scott Satterfield

The head coach of the Cincinnati Bearcats, who praised quarterback JC French IV's performance at the team's Pro Day.

Evan Tengesdahl

A star guard on the Cincinnati Bearcats' offensive line who discussed coach Nic Cardwell's expanded role.

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What they’re saying

“I think he's doing a tremendous job taking on another role. Nothing's really changed. We still have the same amount of meetings as we had before, just kind of added some more unit meetings, more of the offense is together type of thing. We're doing a bunch of meetings together as a whole offense, kind of watching film that way. So it's a little different, but we also do our separate position meetings.”

— Evan Tengesdahl, Cincinnati Bearcats offensive guard

“Last Friday was 15-15, and 11-11 in drills. Hard to get any better than that. So excited for him to continue to grow within our offense. But it was fun for him (to throw during Pro Day), because he didn't know these guys, obviously, and you come out here, that's a hard thing to do as a quarterback, and come out here and throw routes to these guys you don't even know. But for him to be able to do that, he had shown some good accuracy, catchable balls. And I think he's got an opportunity to have an outstanding season.”

— Scott Satterfield, Cincinnati Bearcats head coach

What’s next

The Bearcats will look to continue building momentum on the recruiting trail as they aim to keep their 2027 class ranked in the top-50 nationally.

The takeaway

Cincinnati's offensive line is a key focus for the Bearcats as they look to protect their projected starting quarterback JC French IV. The addition of Zay'Vion Smith, an unranked but promising offensive lineman, is another step in that direction as the program continues to assemble a strong 2027 recruiting class.