The Cincinnati Bearcats come into the 2021 campaign as the top-ranked Group of Five team in the country. Luke Fickell led this program to an 8-0 record in the regular season last year, and the Bearcats housed most of their opponents until the final few games of the campaign. They had to hang on to beat UCF 36-33 in Orlando to keep their unbeaten season intact, and they squeaked past Tulsa 27-24 in the AAC Championship Game to grab a spot in the College Football Playoff. Cincinnati nearly knocked off Georgia in the Peach Bowl, but the Bearcats fell 24-21 to finish the season 9-1.
As long as Fickell stays in the Queen City, Cincinnati will be a team to be reckoned with in the AAC. The Bearcats are 31-6 over the last three seasons, and they have an outside chance at crashing the party and making the College Football Playoff in 2021 if they can knock off Indiana and Notre Dame and get some help along the way.
Cincinnati Bearcats Season Win Total
Over 10 -120
Under 10 +100
Cincinnati Bearcats Preview
The Bearcats breathed a huge sigh of relief when Desmond Ridder announced that he was returning to campus for another season. Ridder came into his own in 2020, piecing together what was easily the best season of his career. He completed 66.2% of his passes for 2,296 yards (8.2 YPA) with 19 touchdowns and six interceptions. Ridder was fantastic as a runner too with 592 yards (6.0 YPC) and 12 touchdowns on the ground.
Ridder might not have as much time to throw as he did in 2020 though. Cincinnati is replacing both of its offensive tackles, and the only senior up front is Vincent McConnell. That might hurt the run game too, but Jerome Ford is more explosive than Gerrid Doaks.
Ford ran for 483 yards (6.6 YPC) and eight touchdowns as a freshman. He wasn’t much of a receiver out of the backfield, but he could tote the rock and rip off long gains.
This receiving corps figures to be one of the best in the conference. Tight end Josh Whyle is a superb pass catching option and led the Bearcats with 28 receptions for 353 yards and six touchdowns last fall. Michael Young Jr. was nearly as effective, while Alec Pierce was a big play threat across from Young.
Cincinnati is led by its defense. The Bearcats have had arguably the best defense in the conference for three straight seasons, and they were one of the best units nationally in 2020.
Myjai Sanders is back for one more year after leading the Bearcats with seven sacks, and he also batted down five passes at the line. Curtis Brooks is clogging the middle along the defensive line, and transfer Jowon Briggs could make a sizable impact.
Second-leading tackler Darrian Beavers returns to pace the linebacking corps, and the secondary might be one of the best in the nation. Ahmad Gardner could be the best cornerback in the country, and Coby Bryant was a First Team All-AAC selection alongside him. Arquon Bush could start on any other team in the conference, and James Wiggins is the best safety in the AAC too.
2021 Cincinnati Bearcats Schedule
September 4 vs. Miami (OH)
September 11 vs. Murray State
September 18 @ Indiana
October 2 @ Notre Dame
October 8 vs. Temple
October 16 vs. UCF
October 23 @ Navy
October 30 @ Tulane
November 6vs. Tulsa
November 12 @ South Florida
November 20 vs. SMU
November 26 @ East Carolina
Cincinnati Bearcats Win Total Prediction
Cincinnati must run the table in order to make the College Football Playoff, and the Bearcats’ toughest tests are early in the season. They head to Bloomington to take on Indiana in mid-September, and they face Notre Dame in South Bend two weeks later. Winning those games leaves the door ajar for Cincinnati to potentially make history.
Of course, the Bearcats must win all of their AAC games too. The toughest stretch is a four-game jaunt that starts with Cincinnati hosting UCF and ends with this team hosting Tulsa. The Knights will be a challenge with Gus Malzahn on the sidelines, and it will be tough to move from facing that offense to planning for road games at Navy and at Tulane the following two weeks.
While the Bearcats are a solid team, this schedule figures to be too much. Ten wins is probably the ceiling for this squad, so the under is the right side.
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