The Cincinnati Bearcats’ nonconference slate is nearly in place, with Bracketeer listing most of the matchups and only a handful of dates and opponents still waiting to be filled in.
Cincinnati opens at home on Nov. 2 against American University, then follows with a game against South Carolina State that is still listed as TBD but is set to come before the Nov. 9 matchup with Minnesota. That meeting with the Golden Gophers is part of a home-and-home scheduled earlier this month.
From there, the Bearcats stay at home for Youngstown State on Nov. 18.
Jerrod Calhoun coached at Youngstown State before Utah State. Cincinnati also has a game against UMass-Lowell that remains TBD, and it is expected to land before a Dec. 2 game against another opponent that has not been announced.
The Crosstown Shootout against Xavier is set for Dec. 5, and that comes before two more TBD home games against Stetson and Marist. Cincinnati is scheduled to wrap up its nonconference home slate on Dec. 29 against an opponent that has not yet been revealed.
Away from Fifth Third Arena, the Bearcats have one true road game on the books: a Nov. 14 trip to face Dayton at UD Arena. That game is part of a home-and-home series that is likely to be renewed into a yearly rivalry.
Cincinnati will also play in the ESPN Events Invitational, facing Boston College on Nov. 26, which is Thanksgiving, and Georgia on Nov. 27. The Bearcats are also slated for a neutral-site game against Clemson at Heritage Bank Center in downtown Cincinnati, though no date has been announced yet.
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Bearcats Have One Costly Problem They Must Fix To Contend
As fall camp approaches, the Bearcats are entering a pivotal fourth season under Scott Satterfield with a familiar question hanging over the program: can they finish games better than they have the past few years? Cincinnati has been good enough to stay in plenty of tight contests, but the late stages have repeatedly exposed a team that has not done enough on either side of the ball to turn pressure into wins.
The path forward starts with a more balanced approach, especially after too much was placed on a banged-up Brendan Sorsby during the losing streak. Defensive coordinator Nate Woody also has work to do in sharpening the stop rate, because Cincinnati cannot afford to keep living on the edge in close fourth quarters if it expects to contend in the Big 12. [Read more 🡒]