2020 Recap: I had fun watching them last season. This was year four of the Luke Fickell experience and it ended up being the best season during his tenure at Cincinnati. A perfect regular season. Some even thought they were good enough to be a playoff team. In a shortened season, Desmond Ridder played very efficient football. 19 touchdown passes and only six interceptions. They cruised to the AAC conference title game and ended up beating Tulsa. The Bearcats clinched a spot in a New Years Six bowl where they fell short to Kirby Smart’s Georgia Bulldogs. Let’s see what they do in 2021.
Notable Departures: Safety James Wiggins, Safety Darrick Forest, Defensive Tackle Elijah Ponder.
2021 Prediction: I don’t see a team in this conference beating them. They return a large chunk of that 2020 club from a year ago and they will only get better. This Bearcats offense will have a lot of weapons. Not only is Desmond back, but wide receiver Michael Young Jr is also returning which gives Desmond his number one target for one more year. The defense will also be strong again. Luke Fickell hired Mike Tressel as the defensive coordinator who will implement the 3-3-5 scheme. They were one of the best in the nation last year and I see them showing that again this fall. Some notable games take place against the Indiana Hoosiers, Notre Dame in South Bend, and a big one in October against UCF.
