Cincinnati Bearcats
American
Tommy Tuberville guided Cincinnati to another successful year in his first season as the head coach. After a slow start to the season, Cincinnati finished strong down the stretch and finished in third place in the new American Athletic Conference. The Bearcats lost QB Munchie Legaux in week two after he injured his left knee, and started off the conference slate with a loss to a USF team that finished in the bottom of the conference. Following the loss, the Bearcats won six in a row, bringing their win total to nine and securing a 7th straight bowl appearance.
2013 Record: 9-3, 6-2
Coach: Tommy Tuberville
Coach Bowl Record: 7-3
Big Wins: 11/9 SMU (28-25), 11/23 at Houston (24-17)
Bad Losses: 9/7 at Illinois (17-45), 12/5 Louisville (24-31 OT)
Strengths:
This Bearcat team is lead by their defense. They rank in the top 20 in the nation in first downs allowed, rushing defense, scoring defense, sacks, and total defense. In all nine of their wins, they held the opposition to 25 points or less. Only twice did they allow over 30 points; in a second week loss to Illinois and in an overtime loss to 19th ranked Louisville in the final game of the regular season. Senior LB Greg Blair leads the defense with 96 tackles, narrowly missing 100 tackles for the second straight season. A lot of the defense’s success can be attributed to their ability to make plays behind the line of scrimmage. Junior LB Nick Temple and sophomore DL Silverberry Mouhon have 13.5 and 10.5 tackles for a loss respectively, and Mouhon added a team leading 9.5 sacks. Five other players recorded at least six tackles for a loss, led by junior DE Brad Harrah with 10. They average seven as a team per game. This has helped them hold opponents to under 100 yards rushing per game. In addition to their stout defense, sixth-year-senior QB Brendan Kay has led an offense that boasts one of the nations best passing attacks. Kay has thrown for 3,121 yards and 22 touchdowns this season, and is a big reason why the Bearcats are 15th in the country in both passing offense and team passing efficiency. Receivers Anthony McClung and Shaq Washington lead the team with 908 and 747 yards receiving respectively. Sophomore Chris Moore has added nine touchdowns through the air. The offensive line has also given Kay a lot of time to throw, allowing only one sack per game, good for 11th in the country. A trio of running backs, Hosey Williams, Ralph David Abernathy IV, and Tion Green, have all rushed for at least 400 yards on the ground, helping the offense put up an average of 482.3 yards per game.
Weaknesses:
Discipline and turnovers have plagued Cincinnati this year. They average 6.42 penalties for almost 60 yards per game, putting them at 91st and 103rd in the country respectively in each category. Penalties have helped teams gain yardage against a defense that hasn’t given up many in the run of play. Turnovers have been the other major problem. They have thrown 16 picks and fumbled 10 times for a total of 26 turnovers this season. Kay has thrown 11 picks, while Legaux threw three more in less than two full games. These numbers put them 101st in the country in turnovers lost. With the defense only forcing 20 turnovers, the Bearcats have a negative turnover margin, which is tough to win with. Cincinnati has also struggled in the red zone, coming up with points only 75 percent of the time, a percentage that puts them in the bottom of the country. Kicker Tony Miliano has struggled mightily this season, making only six of 15 kicks.
Statistical Leaders:
Rushing: Hosey Williams, RB, 609 yards
Passing: Brendon Kay, QB, 3,121 yards
Receiving: Anthony McClung, WR, 908 yards
Tackles: Greg Blair, LB, 96
Sacks: Silverberry Mouhon, DE, 9.5
Interceptions: Deven Drane, CB, 3
2013 Team Stats:
Rushing Offense: 172.5 (62nd in nation, 1st in conference)
Passing Offense: 314.7 (15, 2)
Total Offense: 487.3 (18, 1)
Scoring Offense: 34.2 (34, 3)
Rushing Defense: 91.5 (4, 2)
Pass Defense: 210.8 (24, 2)
Total Defense: 302.4 (8, 2)
Scoring Defense: 18.5 (10, 2)
Turnover Margin: -0.5 (97, 6)
Sacks: 2.91 (16, 2)
Sacks Allowed: 1.00 (12, 1)
Recent Bowl Appearances:
2012 Belk Bowl Duke (48-34)
2011 Liberty Bowl Vanderbilt (31-24)
2009 Sugar Bowl Florida (24-51)
2008 Orange Bowl Virginia Tech (7-20)
2007 PapaJohns.com Bowl Southern Mississippi (31-21)
2006 International Bowl Western Michigan (27-24)
*all team stats through 11/30
