2021 Cincinnati Bearcats football team

The 2021 Cincinnati Bearcats football team represented the University of Cincinnati in the 2021 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Bearcats played their home games at Nippert Stadium and competed as members of the American Athletic Conference (AAC). They were led by fifth-year head coach Luke Fickell.

2021 Cincinnati Bearcats football
AAC champion
AAC Championship Game, W 35–20 vs. Houston
Cotton Bowl Classic (CFP semifinal), L 6–27 vs. Alabama
Conference	American Athletic Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 4
AP	No. 4
Record	13–1 (8–0 AAC)
Head coach	Luke Fickell (5th season)
Offensive coordinator	Mike Denbrock (5th season)
Offensive scheme	Multiple
Defensive coordinator	Mike Tressel (1st season)
Base defense	3–3–5
Home stadium	Nippert Stadium
Seasons ← 2020 2022 →

2021 American Athletic Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 4 Cincinnati y$^		8	–	0					13	–	1
No. 17 Houston y		8	–	0					12	–	2
UCF		5	–	3					9	–	4
East Carolina		5	–	3					7	–	5
Tulsa		5	–	3					7	–	6
SMU		4	–	4					8	–	4
Memphis		3	–	5					6	–	6
Navy		3	–	5					4	–	8
Tulane		1	–	7					2	–	10
South Florida		1	–	7					2	–	10
Temple		1	–	7					3	–	9
Championship: Cincinnati 35, Houston 20
^ – College Football Playoff participant $ – Conference champion y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll

Coming off a 9–1 season and a Peach Bowl appearance in 2020, Cincinnati began the 2021 season ranked eight in the preseason AP Poll. The team secured a signature non-conference win by defeating then-No. 9 Notre Dame on the road, 24–13, in the fourth game of the year. The Bearcats capped an undefeated regular season by defeating Houston in the American Conference championship game. In the final College Football Playoff rankings of the season, in which the Bearcats were the last remaining undefeated team, Cincinnati was ranked No. 4, earning them a spot in the national semi-final game to be played at the Cotton Bowl. This marked the first time a team from one of the Group of Five conferences was selected for a playoff spot.^[1] In that game, Cincinnati lost to first-seeded Alabama, 27–6, ending Cincinnati's season with a 13–1 record, and they were ranked fourth in the final polls. These marked the most wins and highest poll finish in Cincinnati program history.^[2]

Cincinnati's offense was led by quarterback Desmond Ridder, who led the AAC in passer efficiency rating and was named the conference's Offensive Player of the Year. Ridder threw for 3,334 yards and 30 touchdowns on the season. Running back Jerome Ford led the conference in rushing with 1,319 yards and 19 touchdowns.^[3] Three Bearcat offensive lineman were named to the first team All-Conference: Lorenz Metz, Dylan O’Quinn, and Jake Renfro. On defense, the team was led by consensus All-American and AAC Defensive Player of the Year, cornerback Sauce Gardner. Cornerback Coby Bryant was also named to the first-team All-Conference and several All-America teams, and was the recipient of the Jim Thorpe Award. Linebacker Joel Dublanko led the team in tackles, and defensive lineman Curtis Brooks led the conference in sacks. Head coach Luke Fickell was the recipient of several national and the American Conference's Coach of the Year awards. Nine Cincinnati players were selected in the 2022 NFL draft, including fourth-overall pick Sauce Gardner.

Offseason

Coaching changes

After the 2020 season, Marcus Freeman was announced as the defensive coordinator for Notre Dame.^[4] Mike Tressel was hired to replace Freeman as defensive coordinator, returning Tressel to Cincinnati where he had coached from 2004 to 2006.^[5][6]

Darren Paige was named the new running backs coach after the departure of Dan Enos.^[7]

Players

2021 Cincinnati offseason departures

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Notes
James Wiggins	1	S	6’0	205	Senior	Miami, FL	Graduated
Darrick Forrest	5	S	6’ 0"	200	Senior	Columbus, OH	Graduated
Jarell White	8	LB	5’ 10"	205	Senior	Cincinnati, OH	Graduated
Ethan Tucky	19	DE	6’ 2"	245	Senior	Delaware, OH	Graduated
Gerrid Doaks	23	RB	6’ 0"	230	Senior	Indianapolis, IN	Graduated
Cameron Young	25	RB	5’ 11"	230	Senior	Columbus, OH	Graduated
James Smith	37	P	6’ 5"	235	Senior	Wangaratta, Australia	Graduated
Michael Pitts	43	DE	6’ 4"	248	Senior	Stone Mountain, GA	Graduated
James Hudson	55	OL	6’ 5"	310	Junior	Toledo, OH	Declared for the NFL draft
Darius Harper	58	OL	6’ 7"	308	Senior	Springfield, OH	Graduated
Bruno Labelle	87	TE	6’ 4"	248	Senior	Montreal, Canada	Graduated
Elijah Ponder	93	DT	6’ 3"	275	Senior	Atlanta, GA	Graduated

Transfers

Outgoing

Name	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	New School
Jayshon Jackson	WR	5' 10"	175	Senior	Chicago, IL	Ball State
Zach Hummell	OL	6' 2"	285	Sophomore	Hilliard, OH	Miami (OH)
Jakari Robinson	C	6' 2"	308	Senior	Talladega, AL	Memphis
Ben Bryant	QB	6' 3"	218	Junior	La Grange, IL	Eastern Michigan
Michael Lindauer	QB	6' 3"	218	Sophomore	Evansville, IN	Southern Illinois
Dorian Holloway	LB	6' 3"	215	Sophomore	Columbus, OH	Youngstown State
Steven Hawthorne	DE	6' 4"	227	Sophomore	Chicago, IL	Central State
Kobe McAllister	OL	6' 6"	293	Sophomore	Ringgold, GA	Chattanooga

Incoming

Name	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Prev. School
Jowon Briggs	DT	6' 2"	295	Sophomore	Cincinnati, OH	Virginia
Devin Hightower	LB	6' 1"	225	Sophomore	Akron, OH	Michigan State
James Tunstall	OT	6' 6"	329	Junior	Indian Head, MD	Stony Brook

Recruits

College recruiting information (2021)
Name	Hometown	School	Height	Weight	Commit date
Dontay Corleone DT	Cincinnati, Ohio	Colerain High School	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	295 lb (134 kg)	Oct 19, 2019
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Brady Lichtenberg QB	Toledo, Ohio	St. John's Jesuit High School	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Dec 16, 2019
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Myles Montgomery RB	Neptune Beach, Florida	Duncan U. Fletcher High School	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	Mar 6, 2020
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Luke Collinsworth OT	Brookville, Indiana	East Central High School	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	300 lb (140 kg)	Apr 3, 2020
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Jalen Monrrow DE	Lafayette, Indiana	Jefferson High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	258 lb (117 kg)	Apr 7, 2020
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Iesa Jarmon CB	Cincinnati, Ohio	La Salle High School	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Apr 10, 2020
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Leroy Bowers S	Cincinnati, Ohio	Princeton High School	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Apr 12, 2020
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Armorion Smith S	Ecorse, Michigan	River Rouge High School	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Apr 17, 2020
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Mao Glynn OG	Cincinnati, Ohio	Walnut Hills High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	280 lb (130 kg)	Apr 18, 2020
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Will Pauling WR	Flossmoor, Illinois	Homewood-Flossmoor High School	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	Apr 23, 2020
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Landon Fickell OG	Cincinnati, Ohio	Archbishop Moeller High School	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	275 lb (125 kg)	Apr 24, 2020
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Jack Dingle OLB	Louisville, Kentucky	Trinity High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	Apr 25, 2020
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Mason Fletcher P	Melbourne, Australia	ProKick Australia	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	N/A	May 14, 2020
	Recruit ratings: 247Sports:
Malik Rainey ATH	Bolingbrook, Illinois	Bolingbrook High School	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	May 15, 2020
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Caleb Schmitz ATH	Lititz, Pennsylvania	Warwick High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	May 22, 2020
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Jah-mal Williams DE	Fort Lauderdale, Florida	Cardinal Gibbons High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	Aug 12, 2020
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Bryon Threats ATH	Dublin, Ohio	Dublin Coffman High School	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Aug 14, 2020
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Chamon Metayer TE	Miami, Florida	North Miami High School	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Sep 26, 2020
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Christian Lowery K	Kennesaw, Georgia	Harrison High School	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	156 lb (71 kg)	Oct 13, 2020
	Recruit ratings: ESPN:
Jonah Lytle CB	Canton, Ohio	McKinley High School	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Oct 19, 2020
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Cameron Junior OLB	Middletown, Ohio	Middletown High School	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	Oct 23, 2020
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Zeiqui Lawton DE	Charleston, West Virginia	South Charleston High School	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	240 lb (110 kg)	Nov 7, 2020
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Isiah Cox ATH	Alcoa, Tennessee	Alcoa High School	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Nov 8, 2020
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Drew Donley WR	Frisco, Texas	Lebanon Trail High School	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	Dec 14, 2020
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Robert Jackson DT	Warminster, Pennsylvania	Archbishop Wood High School	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	265 lb (120 kg)	Dec 15, 2020
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Overall recruit ranking:    Rivals: 34    247Sports: 44
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2021 Cincinnati Football Commitment List". Rivals. Retrieved January 6, 2021. "2021 Players Commitments – Cincinnati". ESPN. Retrieved January 6, 2021. "2021 Team Ranking". Rivals. Retrieved January 6, 2021. "2021 Cincinnati Bearcats football team". 247Sports. Retrieved January 6, 2021.

Preseason

Award watch lists

Listed in the order that they were released

Award	Player	Position	Year
Walter Camp Award[8]	Sauce Gardner	CB	Jr.
	Myjai Sanders	DE	Sr.
Lott Impact Trophy[9]	Coby Bryant	CB	GS
Dodd Trophy[10]	Luke Fickell
Maxwell Award[11]	Desmond Ridder	QB	Sr.
Bednarik Award[12]	Sauce Gardner	CB	Jr.
	Myjai Sanders	DE	Sr.
Davey O'Brien Award[13]	Desmond Ridder	QB	Sr.
Mackey Award[14]	Josh Whyle	TE	Jr.
Thorpe Award[15]	Coby Bryant	CB	GS
	Sauce Gardner	CB	Jr.
Nagurski Trophy[16]	Sauce Gardner	CB	Jr.
	Myjai Sanders	DE	Sr.
Walter Camp Award[17]	Desmond Ridder	QB	Sr.
Manning Award[18]	Desmond Ridder	QB	Sr.

American Athletic Conference preseason media poll

The American Athletic Conference preseason media poll was released at the virtual media day held August 4, 2021.^[19] Cincinnati, who finished the 2020 season ranked No. 8 nationally, was tabbed as the preseason favorite in the 2021 preseason media poll.

Media poll
Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
1	Cincinnati	262 (22)
2	UCF	241 (2)
3	SMU	188
4	Houston	181
5	Memphis	168
6	Tulsa	153
7	Tulane	132
т-8	East Carolina	85
т-8	Navy	85
10	Temple	46
11	South Florida	43

Schedule

The Bearcats' 2021 schedule consists of six home games and six away games. Cincinnati hosted two of its four non-conference games; Miami (OH) from the Mid-American Conference for their annual Victory Bell game and Murray State from the Ohio Valley Conference. They travelled to Indiana of the Big Ten Conference, and to Notre Dame in their first meeting against former Bearcats head coach Brian Kelly, winning both contests.^[20]

With the departure of UConn before the 2020 season, the American eliminated divisions for the 2020 and 2021 seasons. The Bearcats 2021 schedule included eight conference games – four home games and four road games. Cincinnati hosted Temple, UCF, Tulsa and SMU. They traveled to Navy, Tulane, South Florida, and East Carolina.^[21]

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 4	3:30 p.m.	Miami (OH)*	No. 8	Nippert Stadium Cincinnati, OH (Victory Bell)	ESPN+	W 49–14	37,978
September 11	3:30 p.m.	Murray State*	No. 7	Nippert Stadium Cincinnati, OH	ESPN+	W 42–7	33,498
September 18	12:00 p.m.	at Indiana*	No. 8	Memorial Stadium Bloomington, IN	ESPN	W 38–24	52,656
October 2	2:30 p.m.	at No. 9 Notre Dame*	No. 7	Notre Dame Stadium Notre Dame, IN	NBC	W 24–13	77,622
October 8	7:00 p.m.	Temple	No. 5	Nippert Stadium Cincinnati, OH	ESPN	W 52–3	37,978
October 16	12:00 p.m.	UCF	No. 3	Nippert Stadium Cincinnati, OH (rivalry)	ABC	W 56–21	37,978
October 23	12:00 p.m.	at Navy	No. 2	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium Annapolis, MD	ESPN2	W 27–20	32,004
October 30	12:00 p.m.	at Tulane	No. 2	Yulman Stadium New Orleans, LA	ESPN2	W 31–12	17,012
November 6	3:30 p.m.	Tulsa	No. 6	Nippert Stadium Cincinnati, OH (College GameDay)	ESPN2	W 28–20	37,978
November 12	6:00 p.m.	at South Florida	No. 5	Raymond James Stadium Tampa, FL	ESPN2	W 45–28	30,780
November 20	3:30 p.m.	SMU	No. 5	Nippert Stadium Cincinnati, OH	ESPN	W 48–14	37,978
November 26	3:30 p.m.	at East Carolina	No. 4	Dowdy–Ficklen Stadium Greenville, NC	ABC	W 35–13	38,014
December 4	4:00 p.m.	No. 21 Houston	No. 4	Nippert Stadium Cincinnati, OH (AAC Championship Game)	ABC	W 35–20	37,978
December 31	3:30 p.m.	vs. No. 1 Alabama*	No. 4	AT&T Stadium Arlington, TX (Cotton Bowl Classic–CFP Semifinal)	ESPN	L 6–27	76,313
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll (and CFP Rankings, after November 2) – Released prior to game All times are in Eastern time

Schedule Source:^[22]

Personnel

Roster and staff

2021 Cincinnati Bearcats football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class RB 0 Charles McClelland  Jr QB 3 Evan Prater  So RB 4 Ethan Wright So WR 5 Jordan Jones  Sr WR 7 Tre Tucker Jr WR 8 Michael Young Jr. Sr QB 9 Desmond Ridder (C)  Sr QB 10 Jack Perry Jr TE 11 Leonard Taylor Sr WR 12 Alec Pierce (C) Sr QB 13 Jacob Hoying Fr WR 14 Wyatt Fischer  Jr WR 15 Nate Meyer  So QB 16 Brady Lichtenberg Fr WR 17 Marquez Bell  Fr TE 18 Chamon Metayer Fr WR 19 Will Pauling Fr WR 20 Jadon Thompson So WR 21 Tyler Scott So RB 22 Ryan Montgomery Jr WR 23 Drew Donley Fr RB 24 Jerome Ford  Jr RB 25 Shaun Thomas Fr RB 26 Myles Montgomery Fr WR 27 Norman Love  Fr WR 29 Ashton Koller  Fr RB 30 Michael Kopaygorodsky  Sr TE 34 Caleb Schmitz Fr RB 36 Lewis Shepherd So TE 47 Nate Lawler  Jr OL 50 Dylan O'Quinn  Jr OL 51 Lorenz Metz  Jr OL 52 AJ George Fr OL 53 Gavin Gerhardt  Fr OL 54 Nick Grace Fr OL 55 Mao Glynn II Fr OL 56 Jake Renfro So OL 57 Ben Blevins  Fr OL 60 Joe Huber  Fr OL 64 Jake Burns  So OL 65 Cody Lamb  Sr OL 66 Landon Fickell Fr OL 67 Jaxon Smith  Fr OL 69 Cam Jones  So OL 70 Joey Groeber Jr OL 71 Colin Woodside  Jr OL 72 James Tunstall Jr OL 73 CJ Johnson Jr OL 74 Jeremy Cooper  Jr OL 75 John Williams  Fr OL 76 Marcelo Mendiola  So OL 77 Vincent McConnell (C)  Sr OL 78 Luke Collinsworth Fr WR 80 Chris Scott  Fr TE 81 Josh Whyle  Jr TE 82 Noah Davis  Sr WR 83 Blue Smith  Jr WR 85 Jiair Thomas  So TE 86 Jack Campbell  So TE 87 Joey McBee Fr TE 88 Payten Singletary  Fr	Defense Pos. # Name Class LB 0 Darrian Beavers  Sr CB 1 Sauce Gardner Jr LB 2 Wilson Huber  Sr S 3 Ja'von Hicks Sr CB 4 Justin Harris Jr S 5 Ja'Quan Sheppard Jr S 6 Bryan Cook (C) Sr CB 7 Coby Bryant (C)  Sr S 8 Isiah Cox Fr CB 9 Arquon Bush  Jr S 10 Bryon Threats Fr CB 11 Sammy Anderson So CB 12 Todd Bumphis  Fr CB 12 Iesa Jarmon Fr LB 13 Ty Van Fossen  Jr CB 15 Taj Ward  Jr LB 16 Cameron Junior Fr DL 18 Jowon Briggs So LB 19 Brody Ingle Jr LB 20 Deshawn Pace So DE 21 Myjai Sanders (C) Sr CB 22 De'Arre McDonald  Fr LB 23 Daved Jones Jr So LB 24 Jaheim Thomas  Fr LB 25 Jack Haglage Fr CB 26 Malik Rainey Fr S 27 Armorion Smith Fr S 29 Jacob Dingle Jr DL 30 Rob Jackson Fr CB 31 Casey Kirk  Sr S 32 James Camden  Fr DL 33 Zeiqui Lawton Fr DL 34 Justin Wodtly  Fr LB 35 Ryan Royer  Sr S 36 Will Adams  Jr LB 37 Devin Hightower Fr LB 40 Leroy Bowers Fr LB 41 Joel Dublanko (C)  Sr DL 42 Malik Vann Sr CB 43 Jonah Lytle Fr DL 44 Jah-Mal Williams Fr DL 45 Barak Faulk  Fr LB 49 Jack Dingle Fr LB 50 Jackson Bruscianelli  So DL 54 Izaiah Ruffin  So DL 57 Ryan Mullaney  So DL 58 Dontay Corleone Fr DL 87 Jalen Monrrow Fr DL 89 Sterling Miles  Fr DL 90 Jabari Taylor  Sr DL 91 Miles Manigualt  Sr DL 92 Curtis Brooks  Sr DL 94 Chase Brown  Jr DL 96 Dominique Perry  Fr DL 97 Eric Phillips  So DL 98 Mychal Keys  Jr DL 99 Marcus Brown  Sr	Special teams } Pos. # Name Class K 17 Cole Smith Sr P 31 Mason Fletcher Fr P 35 Brady Young Fr K 39 Bryce Burton  So LS 85 Triston O'Brien Fr K 90 Christian Lowery Fr K 91 Alex Bales  So LS 96 Cayson Pfeiffer  So	Head coach Luke Fickell (Ohio State) – 5th year Coordinators/assistant coaches Mike Denbrock (Grand Valley State) 5th year – (offensive coordinator/tight ends) Mike Tressel (Cornell (IA)) 1st year (4th overall) – (defensive coordinator/linebackers) Gino Guidugli (Cincinnati) 5th year – (passing game coordinator/quarterbacks) Brian Mason (Denison) 4th year – (special teams coordinator) Mike Brown (Liberty) 3rd year – (wide receivers) Ron Crook (West Liberty State) 5th year – (offensive line) Perry Eliano (Stephen F. Austin) 2nd year – (cornerbacks) Colin Hitschler (Pennsylvania) 2nd year – (safeties) Greg Scruggs (Louisville) 2nd year – (defensive line) Darren Paige (Findlay) 1st year – (running backs) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster

Depth chart

Defense NK Arquon Bush Taj Ward   FS Bryan Cook Jacob Dingle   WLB MLB SLB Darrian Beavers Joel Dublanko Ty Van Fossen Jaheim Thomas Wilson Huber Deshawn Pace Daved Jones Jr.     SS Ja'von Hicks Will Adams   CB Coby Bryant Todd Bumphis   DE NT DE Myjai Sanders Curtis Brooks Malik Vann Jabari Taylor Marcus Brown Jowon Briggs   Eric Phillips   CB Sauce Gardner Ja'Quan Sheppard   Offense WR Michael Young Jr. Tre Tucker Will Pauling WR Alec Pierce Jordan Jones Blue Smith LT LG C RG RT John Williams OR James Tunstall Jeremy Cooper Jake Renfro Vincent McConnell Dylan O'Quinn   Colin Woodside Gavin Gerhardt Lorenz Metz Cam Jones   Cody Lamb       TE Josh Whyle OR Leonard Taylor     WR Tyler Scott Jadon Thompson Chris Scott QB Desmond Ridder Evan Prater   RB Jerome Ford Charles McClelland OR Ryan Montgomery

Game summaries

Miami (OH)

See also: 2021 Miami RedHawks football team and Victory Bell (Cincinnati–Miami)

Miami (OH) at Cincinnati
(Victory Bell)

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
RedHawks	0	0	0	14	14
• No. 8 Bearcats	21	14	0	14	49

• Date: September 4, 2021
• Location: Nippert Stadium
  Cincinnati, OH
• Game start: 3:30 p.m. EDT
• Elapsed time: 3 hours and 28 minutes
• Game attendance: 37,978
• Game weather: 81 °F (27 °C) • Weather: Cloudy • Wind: SW 7 MPH
• Referee: Tim O'Dey
• TV announcers (ESPN+): Connor Onion (play-by-play) and Bobby Carpenter (analyst)

      

Scoring summary

1	14:15	CIN	Tyler Scott 81-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Cole Smith kick) (2 plays, 84 yards, 0:45)	CIN 0–7
	08:01	CIN	Ryan Montgomery 8-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Cole Smith kick) (8 plays, 97 yards, 3:36)	CIN 0–14
	02:45	CIN	Josh Whyle 23-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Cole Smith kick) (8 plays, 72 yards, 3:52)	CIN 0–21
2	08:03	CIN	Jerome Ford 21-yard rush (Cole Smith kick) (5 plays, 68 yards, 2:46)	CIN 0–28
	02:53	CIN	Desmond Ridder 25-yard rush (Cole Smith kick) (5 plays, 49 yards, 3:04)	CIN 0–35
4	11:46	CIN	Leonard Taylor 8-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Cole Smith kick) (10 plays, 86 yards, 3:05)	CIN 0–42
	03:20	MIA	Kenny Tracy 19-yard rush (Graham Nicholson kick) (13 plays, 75 yards, 8:26)	CIN 7–42
	02:30	MIA	John Saunders Jr. 32-yard interception return (Graham Nicholson kick) (2 plays, 1 yard, 0:50)	CIN 14–42
	00:23	CIN	Evan Prater 14-yard rush (Cole Smith kick) (7 plays, 83 yards, 2:07)	CIN 14–49

Statistics	MIA	CIN
First downs	17	27
Total yards	278	542
Rushing yards	169	247
Passing yards	109	295
Time of possession	34:15	25:45

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
MIA	Passing	AJ Mayer	9/28, 109 yards
	Rushing	Keyon Mozee	15 carries, 80 yards
	Receiving	Mac Hippenhammer	3 receptions, 64 yards
CIN	Passing	Desmond Ridder	20/25, 295 yards, 4 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Jerome Ford	12 carries, 121 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Tyler Scott	1 reception, 81 yards, 1 TD

Murray State

See also: 2021 Murray State Racers football team

Murray State at Cincinnati

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Racers	0	7	0	0	7
• No. 7 Bearcats	0	7	14	21	42

• Date: September 11, 2021
• Location: Nippert Stadium
  Cincinnati, OH
• Game start: 3:35 p.m. EDT
• Elapsed time: 3 hours and 10 minutes
• Game attendance: 33,498
• Game weather: 83 °F (28 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: N/A
• Referee: Tim Rich
• TV announcers (ESPN+): Connor Onion (play-by-play) and Bobby Carpenter (analyst)

    

Scoring summary

2	13:41	MUR	Preston Rice 1-yard run (Aaron Baum kick) (12 plays, 65 yards, 7:31)	MUR 7–0
	09:41	CIN	Noah Davis 2-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Cole Smith kick) (6 plays, 40 yards, 2:16)	7–7
3	10:05	CIN	Jerome Ford 13-yard run (Cole Smith kick) (10 plays, 75 yards, 4:50)	CIN 7–14
	04:58	CIN	Jerome Ford 8-yard run (Cole Smith kick) (8 plays, 55 yards, 3:08)	CIN 7–21
4	14:13	CIN	Tyler Scott 23-yard pass from Desmond Ritter (Cole Smith kick) (1 plays, 23 yards, 0:06)	CIN 7–28
	10:50	CIN	Jerome Ford 3-yard run (Cole Smith kick) (4 plays, 63 yards, 2:09)	CIN 7–35
	01:08	CIN	Payten Singletary 18-yard pass from Evan Prater (Cole Smith kick) (1 plays, 18 yards, 0:07)	CIN 7–42

Statistics	MUR	CIN
First downs	15	17
Total yards	242	391
Rushing yards	93	130
Passing yards	149	261
Time of possession	34:48	25:12

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
MUR	Passing	Preston Rice	17/29, 149 yards, 3 INT
	Rushing	Damonta Witherspoon	16 carries, 52 yards
	Receiving	Deshun Britten	5 receptions, 58 yards
CIN	Passing	Desmond Ridder	14/22, 243 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	Jerome Ford	18 carries, 113 yards, 3 TD
	Receiving	Tyler Scott	4 receptions, 74 yards, 1 TD

At Indiana

See also: 2021 Indiana Hoosiers football team

Cincinnati at Indiana

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
• No. 8 Bearcats	0	10	13	15	38
Hoosiers	7	7	10	0	24

• Date: September 18, 2021
• Location: Memorial Stadium
  Bloomington, IN
• Game start: 12:00 p.m. EDT
• Elapsed time: 4 hours and 6 minutes
• Game attendance: 52,656
• Game weather: 85 °F (29 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: W 5 MPH
• Referee: Michael Cannon
• TV announcers (ESPN): Dave Pasch (play-by-play), Dusty Dvoracek (analyst), and Tom Luginbill (sideline)

      

Scoring summary

1	6:15	IND	Peyton Hendershot 16-yard pass from Michael Penix Jr. (Charles Campbell kick) (6 plays, 50 yards, 2:22)	IND 0–7
2	05:06	CIN	Stephen Carr 5-yard pass from Michael Penix Jr. (Charles Campbell) (2 plays, 6 yards, 0:42)	IND 0–14
	01:33	CIN	Jerome Ford 6-yard rush (Cole Smith kick) (9 plays, 75 yards, 3:33)	IND 7–14
	00:00	CIN	Cole Smith 32-yard field goal (5 plays, 32 yards, 0:23)	IND 10–14
3	05:47	CIN	Jerome Ford 3-yard rush (Cole Smith kick) (10 plays, 79 yards, 4:29)	CIN 17–14
	03:52	IND	D.J. Matthews 14-yard rush (Charles Campbell kick) (5 plays, 75 yards, 1:55)	IND 17–21
	03:41	CIN	Tre Tucker 99-yard kickoff return (Cole Smith kick missed) (0 plays, 99 yards, 0:00)	CIN 23–21
	00:41	IND	Charles Campbell 49-yard field goal (9 plays, 44 yards, 2:58)	IND 23–24
4	12:13	CIN	Alec Pierce 19-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Cole Smith kick) (9 plays, 75 yards, 03:26)	CIN 30–24
	02:37	CIN	Desmond Ridder 7-yard rush (Ridder pass to Leonard Taylor) (3 plays, 6 yards, 0:53)	CIN 38–24

Statistics	CIN	IND
First downs	20	20
Total yards	328	376
Rushing yards	118	152
Passing yards	210	224
Time of possession	29:43	29:36

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
CIN	Passing	Desmond Ridder	20/36, 210 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Jerome Ford	20 carries, 66 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Alec Pierce	5 receptions, 86 yards, 1 TD
IND	Passing	Michael Penix Jr.	17/40, 224 yards, 2 TD, 3 INT
	Rushing	Stephen Carr	21 carries, 52 yards
	Receiving	D.J. Matthews	5 receptions, 120 yards

At No. 9 Notre Dame

See also: 2021 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team

Cincinnati at Notre Dame

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
• No. 7 Bearcats	0	17	0	7	24
No. 9 Fighting Irish	0	0	7	6	13

• Date: October 2, 2021
• Location: Notre Dame Stadium
  South Bend, IN
• Game start: 2:41 p.m. EDT
• Elapsed time: 3 hours and 29 minutes
• Game attendance: 77,622
• Game weather: 70 °F (21 °C) • Weather: Cloudy • Wind: SW 9 MPH
• Referee: Marcus Woods
• TV announcers (NBC): Mike Tirico (play–by–play), Drew Brees (analyst), and Kathryn Tappen (sideline)

   

Scoring summary

2	12:09	CIN	Leonard Taylor 1-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Cole Smith kick) (3 plays, 8 yards, 1:12)	CIN 7–0
	10:32	CIN	Cole Smith 23-yard FG (5 plays, 12 yards, 1:32)	CIN 10–0
	00:40	CIN	Tre Tucker 27-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Cole Smith kick) (5 plays, 80 yards, 1:08)	CIN 17–0
3	01:19	ND	Kyren Williams 3-yard run (Jonathan Doerer kick) (4 plays, 38 yards, 2:01)	CIN 17–7
4	08:20	ND	Braden Lenzy 32-yard pass from Drew Pyne (Jonathan Doerer kick failed) (8 plays, 80 yards, 3:08)	CIN 17–13
	05:08	CIN	Desmond Ridder 3-yard run (Cole Smith kick) (6 plays, 75 yards, 3:12)	CIN 24–13

Statistics	CIN	ND
First downs	16	19
Total yards	390	341
Rushing yards	93	84
Passing yards	297	257
Time of possession	28:10	31:50

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
CIN	Passing	Desmond Ridder	19/32, 297 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	Jerome Ford	17 carries, 71 yards
	Receiving	Alec Pierce	6 receptions, 144 yards
ND	Passing	Drew Pyne	9/22, 143 yards, 1 TD
	Rushing	Kyren Williams	13 carries, 48 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Michael Mayer	8 receptions, 93 yards

Temple

See also: 2021 Temple Owls football team

Temple at Cincinnati

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Owls	0	3	0	0	3
• No. 5 Bearcats	10	7	28	7	52

• Date: October 8, 2021
• Location: Nippert Stadium
  Cincinnati, OH
• Game start: 7:05 p.m. EDT
• Elapsed time: 3 hours and 18 minutes
• Game attendance: 37,978
• Game weather: 75 °F (24 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: SE 2 MPH
• Referee: Edwin Lee
• TV announcers (ESPN): Clay Matvick (play-by-play), Rocky Boiman (analyst), and Tiffany Blackmon (sideline)

     

Scoring summary

1	07:15	CIN	Cole Smith 30-yard FG (10 plays, 48 yards, 4:26)	CIN 0–3
	02:52	CIN	Alec Pierce 9-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Cole Smith kick) (2 plays, 13 yards, 0:34)	CIN 0–10
2	09:42	CIN	Jerome Ford 8-yard run (Cole Smith kick) (11 plays, 65 yards, 5:10)	CIN 0–17
	05:27	TEM	Rory Bell 55-yard FG (9 plays, 37 yards, 4:03)	CIN 3–17
3	14:50	CIN	Jerome Ford 75-yard run (Cole Smith kick) (1 play, 75 yards, 0:10)	CIN 3–24
	11:00	CIN	Tyler Scott 38-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Cole Smith kick) (2 plays, 54 yards, 0:41)	CIN 3–31
	07:45	CIN	Charles McClelland 28-yard run (Cole Smith kick) (3 plays, 61 yards, 1:04)	CIN 3–38
	00:54	CIN	Michael Young 11-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Cole Smith kick) (10 plays, 76 yards, 4:03)	CIN 3–45
4	10:15	CIN	Ethan Wright 58-yard run (Cole Smith kick) (5 plays, 77 yards, 2:14)	CIN 3–52

Statistics	TEM	CIN
First downs	14	23
Total yards	235	542
Rushing yards	85	279
Passing yards	150	263
Time of possession	31:59	28:01

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
TEM	Passing	D'Wan Mathis	16/27, 120 yards, 1 INT
	Rushing	Justin Lynch	3 carries, 29 yards
	Receiving	Jose Barbon	5 receptions, 45 yards
CIN	Passing	Desmond Ridder	22/30, 259 yards, 3 TD
	Rushing	Jerome Ford	15 carries, 149 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Alec Pierce	6 receptions, 93 yards, 1 TD

UCF

See also: 2021 UCF Knights football team

UCF at Cincinnati

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Knights	0	7	7	7	21
• No. 3 Bearcats	14	21	7	14	56

• Date: October 16, 2021
• Location: Nippert Stadium
  Cincinnati, OH
• Game start: 12:06 p.m. EDT
• Elapsed time: 3 hours and 28 minutes
• Game attendance: 37,978
• Game weather: 63 °F (17 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: SE 4 MPH
• Referee: Henry Johns
• TV announcers (ABC): Bob Wischusen (play-by-play), Dan Orlovsky (analyst), and Kris Budden (reporter)

       

Scoring summary

1	09:30	CIN	Jerome Ford 1-yard run (Cole Smith kick) (8 plays, 38 yards, 4:01)	CIN 0–7
	01:30	CIN	Jerome Ford 2-yard run (Cole Smith kick) (10 plays, 66 yards, 4:51)	CIN 0–14
2	07:40	CIN	Alec Pierce 19-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Cole Smith kick) (4 plays, 64 yards, 1:23)	CIN 0–21
	05:33	CIN	Jerome Ford 79-yard run (Cole Smith kick) (1 plays, 79 yards, 0:12)	CIN 0–28
	02:53	CIN	Jerome Ford 4-yard run (Cole Smith kick) (4 plays, 34 yards, 1:31)	CIN 0–35
	00:33	UCF	Brandon Johnson 16-yard pass from Mikey Keene (Daniel Obarski kick) (8 plays, 75 yards, 2:20)	CIN 7–35
3	02:55	CIN	Coby Bryant 74-yard interception (Cole Smith kick)	CIN 7–42
	00:41	UCF	Isaiah Bowser 4-yard run (Daniel Obarski kick) (5 plays, 75 yards, 2:14)	CIN 14–42
4	10:44	CIN	Ethan Wright 2-yard run (Cole Smith kick) (2 plays, 8 yards, 0:19)	CIN 14–49
	05:43	CIN	Evan Prater 6-yard run (Cole Smith kick) (6 plays, 49 yards, 2:30)	CIN 14–56
	01:48	UCF	Mark-Anthony Richards 2-yard run (Daniel Obarski kick) (7 plays, 70 yards, 3:55)	CIN 21–56

Statistics	UCF	CIN
First downs	14	23
Total yards	296	476
Rushing yards	155	336
Passing yards	141	140
Time of possession	32:48	27:12

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
UCF	Passing	Mikey Keene	16/27, 141 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Ryan O'Keefe	1 carries, 51 yards
	Receiving	Ryan O'Keefe	7 receptions, 60 yards
CIN	Passing	Desmond Ridder	13/23, 140 yards, 1 TD
	Rushing	Jerome Ford	20 carries, 190 yards, 4 TD
	Receiving	Leonard Taylor	4 receptions, 47 yards

At Navy

See also: 2021 Navy Midshipmen football team

Cincinnati at Navy

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
• No. 2 Bearcats	7	6	14	0	27
Midshipmen	7	3	0	10	20

• Date: October 23, 2021
• Location: Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium
  Annapolis, MD
• Game start: 12:00 p.m. EDT
• Elapsed time: 3 hours and 25 minutes
• Game attendance: 32,004
• Game weather: 65 °F (18 °C) • Weather: Partly Cloudy • Wind: WSW 5–10 MPH
• Referee: Tim Rich
• TV announcers (ESPN2): Dave Flemming (play-by-play), Rod Gilmore (analyst), and Stormy Buonantony (sideline)

     

Scoring summary

1	3:51	NAVY	Tai Lavatai 2-yard run (Bijan Nichols kick) (13 plays, 79 yards, 7:12)	NAVY 0–7
	2:50	CIN	Josh Whyle 31-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Christian Lowery kick) (3 plays, 44 yards, 1:01)	TIE 7–7
2	14:15	NAVY	Bijan Nichols 33-yard field goal (7 plays, 35 yards, 3:35)	NAVY 7–10
	4:07	CIN	Christian Lowery 32-yard field goal (15 plays, 61 yards, 6:06)	TIE 10–10
	0:00	CIN	Alex Bales 52-yard field goal (1 play, 0 yards, 0:01)	CIN 13–10
3	7:39	CIN	Jerome Ford 43-yard run (Christian Lowery kick) (4 plays, 54 yards, 1:27)	CIN 20–10
	1:13	CIN	Josh Whyle 3-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Christian Lowery kick) (11 plays, 45 yards, 4:22)	CIN 27–10
4	8:19	NAVY	Bijan Nichols 27-yard field goal (9 plays, 48 yards, 4:27)	CIN 27–13
	0:50	NAVY	Tai Lavatai 1-yard run (Bijan Nichols kick) (16 plays, 90 yards, 4:39)	CIN 27–20

Statistics	CIN	NAVY
First downs	14	22
Total yards	271	308
Rushing yards	95	192
Passing yards	176	116
Time of possession	20:33	39:27

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
CIN	Passing	Desmond Ridder	18/30, 176 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Jerome Ford	15 carries, 90 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Josh Whyle	4 receptions, 60 yards, 2 TD
NAVY	Passing	Tai Lavatai	11/16, 116 yards, 1 INT
	Rushing	Isaac Ruoss	19 carries, 80 yards
	Receiving	Kai Puailoa-Rojas	2 receptions, 47 yards

At Tulane

See also: 2021 Tulane Green Wave football team

Cincinnati at Tulane

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
• No. 2 Bearcats	7	7	7	10	31
Green Wave	0	12	0	0	12

• Date: October 30, 2021
• Location: Yulman Stadium
  New Orleans, LA
• Game start: 11:00 a.m. CDT
• Elapsed time: 3 hours and 11 minutes
• Game attendance: 17,012
• Game weather: 62 °F (17 °C) • Weather: Partly Cloudy • Wind: NW 7 MPH
• Referee: Luke Richmond
• TV announcers (ESPN2): Anish Shroff (play-by-play), Mike Golic Jr. (analyst), and Taylor McGregor (sideline)

    

Scoring summary

1	1:14	CIN	Josh Whyle 16-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Christian Lowery kick) (16 plays, 99 yards, 7:25)	CIN 7–0
2	10:43	TULN	Marvin Moody 8-yard safety (0 plays, 0 yards, 0:00)	CIN 7–2
	7:58	TULN	Tyjae Spears 47-yard run (Merek Glover kick) (6 plays, 66 yards, 2:34)	TULN 7–9
	6:19	CIN	Jerome Ford 3-yard run (Christian Lowery kick) (5 plays, 80 yards, 1:33)	CIN 14–9
	0:00	TULN	Merek Glover 41-yard field goal (4 plays, 26 yards, 0:30)	CIN 14–12
3	3:12	CIN	Josh Whyle 5-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Christian Lowery kick) (13 plays, 66 yards, 5:55)	CIN 21–12
4	6:16	CIN	Christian Lowery 27-yard field goal (4 plays, 1 yard, 1:09)	CIN 24–12
	4:13	CIN	Jerome Ford 26-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Christian Lowery kick) (2 plays, 29 yards, 0:49)	CIN 31–12

Statistics	CIN	TULN
First downs	18	17
Total yards	351	280
Rushing yards	124	187
Passing yards	227	93
Time of possession	28:12	31:48

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
CIN	Passing	Desmond Ridder	17/27, 227 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Jerome Ford	18 carries, 65 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Josh Whyle	4 receptions, 79 yards, 2 TD
TULN	Passing	Kai Horton	7/16, 79 yards, 2 INT
	Rushing	Tyjae Spears	19 carries, 106 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Jha'Quan Jackson	3 receptions, 34 yards

Tulsa

See also: 2021 Tulsa Golden Hurricane football team

Tulsa at Cincinnati
(College GameDay)

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Golden Hurricane	0	12	0	8	20
• No. 6 Bearcats	14	0	14	0	28

• Date: November 6, 2021
• Location: Nippert Stadium
  Cincinnati, OH
• Game start: 3:30 p.m. EDT
• Elapsed time: 3 hours and 39 minutes
• Game attendance: 37,978
• Game weather: 52 °F (11 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: SW 2 MPH
• Referee: Charles Lamertina
• TV announcers (ESPN2): Anish Shroff (play-by-play), Mike Golic Jr. (analyst), and Taylor McGregor (sideline)

    

Scoring summary

1	9:48	CIN	Desmond Ridder 3-yard run (Christian Lowery kick) (7 plays, 53 yards, 3:15)	CIN 0–7
	1:21	CIN	Jerome Ford 1-yard run (Christian Lowery kick) (13 plays, 94 yards, 5:55)	CIN 0–14
2	12:20	TLSA	Zack Long 35-yard field goal (9 plays, 48 yards, 4:01)	CIN 3–14
	2:44	TLSA	Shamari Brooks 8-yard run (Zack Long missed PAT) (12 plays, 75 yards, 4:34)	CIN 9–14
	0:10	TLSA	Zack Long 50-yard field goal (9 plays, 26 yards, 1:41)	CIN 12–14
3	13:17	CIN	Alec Pierce 12-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Christian Lowery kick) (4 plays, 72 yards, 1:43)	CIN 12–21
	9:04	CIN	Michael Young Jr. 31-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Christian Lowery kick) (3 plays, 44 yards, 1:04)	CIN 12–28
4	8:10	TLSA	JuanCarlos Santana 21-yard pass from Davis Brin (Davis Brin pass to Sam Crawford Jr. for two-point conversion) (10 plays, 82 yard, 4:11)	CIN 20–28

Statistics	TLSA	CIN
First downs	26	18
Total yards	446	390
Rushing yards	297	116
Passing yards	149	274
Time of possession	34:16	25:44

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
TLSA	Passing	Davis Brin	17/26, 149 yards, 1 TD
	Rushing	Shamari Brooks	25 carries, 132 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Josh Johnson	7 receptions, 65 yards
CIN	Passing	Desmond Ridder	15/23, 274 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Desmond Ridder	12 carries, 43 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Alec Pierce	5 receptions, 113 yards, 1 TD

At South Florida

See also: 2021 South Florida Bulls football team

Cincinnati at South Florida

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
• No. 5 Bearcats	7	17	7	14	45
Bulls	7	0	14	7	28

• Date: November 12, 2021
• Location: Raymond James Stadium
  Tampa, FL
• Game start: 6:00 p.m. EST
• Elapsed time: 3 hours and 31 minutes
• Game attendance: 30,780
• Game weather: 75 °F (24 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: E 5 MPH
• Referee: Nate Black
• TV announcers (ESPN2): Jason Benetti (play-by-play), Andre Ware (analyst), and Paul Carcaterra (sideline)

       

Scoring summary

1	7:08	USF	Jaren Mangham 2-yard run (Spencer Shrader kick) (1 play, 2 yards, 0:05)	USF 0–7
	2:57	CIN	Ryan Montgomery 12-yard run (Alex Bales kick) (9 plays, 75 yards, 4:11)	TIE 7–7
2	9:36	CIN	Desmond Ridder 13-yard run (Alex Bales kick) (11 plays, 73 yards, 5:31)	CIN 14–7
	5:30	CIN	Tre Tucker 1-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Alex Bales kick) (6 plays, 34 yards, 2:51)	CIN 21–7
	0:00	CIN	Alex Bales 27-yard field goal (10 plays, 46 yards, 2:11)	CIN 24–7
3	11:48	CIN	Josh Whyle 21-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Alex Bales kick) (8 plays, 66 yards, 3:12)	CIN 31–7
	6:39	USF	Jaren Mangham 1-yard run (Spencer Shrader kick) (12 plays, 75 yards, 5:09)	CIN 31–14
	3:48	USF	Jimmy Horn Jr. 80-yard pass from Timmy McClain (Spencer Shrader kick) (1 play, 80 yards, 0:13)	CIN 31–21
4	14:00	CIN	Ethan Wright 1-yard run (Alex Bales kick) (10 plays, 73 yards, 4:48)	CIN 38–21
	6:14	USF	Timmy McClain 2-yard run (Spencer Shrader kick) (16 plays, 98 yards, 5:13)	CIN 38–28
	1:22	CIN	Ryan Montgomery 55-yard run (Alex Bales kick) (1 play, 55 yards, 0:11)	CIN 45–28

Statistics	CIN	USF
First downs	30	21
Total yards	506	346
Rushing yards	202	101
Passing yards	304	245
Time of possession	32:30	27:30

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
CIN	Passing	Desmond Ridder	31/39, 304 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Ryan Montgomery	6 carries, 72 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Josh Whyle	5 receptions, 61 yards, 1 TD
USF	Passing	Timmy McClain	16/30, 245 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Jaren Mangham	16 carries, 53 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Jimmy Horn Jr.	5 receptions, 108 yards, 1 TD

SMU

See also: 2021 SMU Mustangs football team

SMU at Cincinnati

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Mustangs	0	0	0	14	14
• No. 5 Bearcats	14	13	14	7	48

• Date: November 20
• Location: Nippert Stadium
  Cincinnati, OH
• Game start: 3:40 p.m. EST
• Elapsed time: 3 hours and 19 minutes
• Game attendance: 37,978
• Game weather: Temperature: 49 °F (9 °C) • Weather: Cloudy • Wind: SW 8 MPH
• Referee: Charles Lamertina
• TV announcers (ESPN): Bob Wischusen (play-by-play), Dan Orlovsky (analyst), and Kris Budden (sideline)

     

Scoring summary

1	12:54	CIN	Tyler Scott 53-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Alex Bales kick) (1 play, 53 yards, 0:07)	CIN 7–0
	5:32	CIN	Jerome Ford 4-yard run (Alex Bales kick) (6 plays, 25 yards, 2:58)	CIN 14–0
2	13:37	CIN	Desmond Ridder 40-yard run (Alex Bales missed PAT) (6 plays, 78 yards, 3:02)	CIN 20–0
	8:19	CIN	Alec Pierce 17-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Alex Bales kick) (8 plays, 71 yards, 3:40)	CIN 27–0
3	10:59	CIN	Desmond Ridder 5-yard pass from Jordan Jones (Alex Bales kick) (7 plays, 92 yards, 4:01)	CIN 34–0
	5:44	CIN	Alec Pierce 17-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Alex Bales kick) (8 plays, 42 yards, 3:59)	CIN 41–0
4	11:06	CIN	Jordan Jones 11-yard pass from Evan Prater (Alex Bales kick) (12 plays, 74 yards, 6:22)	CIN 48–0
	8:32	SMU	Tre Siggers 2-yard run (Blake Mazza kick) (6 plays, 63 yards, 2:34)	CIN 48–7
	1:17	SMU	Rashee Rice 3-yard pass from Tanner Mordecai (Blake Mazza kick) (9 plays, 46 yards, 3:43)	CIN 48–14

Pregame line	Over/under
CIN –9.5	65.5[23]

Statistics	SMU	CIN
First downs	15	24
Total yards	199	544
Rushing yards	133	249
Passing yards	66	295
Time of possession	24:39	35:21

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
SMU	Passing	Tanner Mordecai	15/26, 66 yards, 1 TD
	Rushing	Ulysses Bentley IV	11 carries, 68 yards
	Receiving	Rashee Rice	7 receptions, 21 yards, 1 TD
CIN	Passing	Desmond Ridder	17/23, 274 yards, 3 TD
	Rushing	Jerome Ford	19 carries, 82 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Tre Tucker	7 receptions, 114 yards

At East Carolina

See also: 2021 East Carolina Pirates football team

Cincinnati at East Carolina

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
• No. 4 Bearcats	0	21	0	14	35
Pirates	3	0	3	7	13

• Date: November 26, 2021
• Location: Dowdy–Ficklen Stadium
  Greenville, NC
• Game start: 3:50 p.m. EST
• Elapsed time: 3 hours and 23 minutes
• Game attendance: 38,014
• Game weather: 55 °F (13 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: NW 20 MPH
• Referee: Hank Johns
• TV announcers (ABC): Jason Benetti (play-by-play), Andre Ware (analyst), and Paul Carcaterra (sideline)

    

Scoring summary

1	5:29	ECU	Owen Daffer 35-yard field goal (12 plays, 56 yards, 4:37)	ECU 0–3
2	13:48	CIN	Leonard Taylor 44-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Christian Lowery kick) (5 plays, 76 yards, 1:31)	CIN 7–3
	10:32	CIN	Jerome Ford 2-yard run (Christian Lowery kick) (3 plays, 58 yards, 1:09)	CIN 14–3
	4:40	CIN	Alec Pierce 28-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Christian Lowery kick) (7 plays, 88 yards, 3:19)	CIN 21–3
3	2:18	ECU	Owen Daffer 44-yard field goal (11 plays, 51 yards, 5:58)	CIN 21–6
4	11:17	CIN	Sauce Gardner 60-yard return of blocked field goal (Christian Lowery kick) (9 plays, 30 yards, 4:04)	CIN 28–6
	9:38	ECU	Jai Hatfield 12-yard pass from Holton Ahlers (Owen Daffer kick) (5 plays, 75 yards, 1:39)	CIN 28–13
	1:44	CIN	Ryan Montgomery 2-yard run (Christian Lowery kick) (5 plays, 39 yards, 1:35)	CIN 35–13

Statistics	CIN	ECU
First downs	20	19
Total yards	444	282
Rushing yards	143	54
Passing yards	301	228
Time of possession	27:42	32:18

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
CIN	Passing	Desmond Ridder	17/28, 301 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Jerome Ford	20 carries, 85 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Alec Pierce	8 receptions, 136 yards, 1 TD
ECU	Passing	Holton Ahlers	19/38, 228 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Keaton Mitchell	17 carries, 55 yards
	Receiving	Tyler Snead	6 receptions, 91 yards

No. 21 Houston (AAC Championship game)

See also: 2021 Houston Cougars football team and 2021 American Athletic Conference Football Championship Game

2021 American Athletic Conference Football Championship Game

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 21 Cougars	10	3	0	7	20
• No. 4 Bearcats	14	0	21	0	35

• Date: December 4, 2021
• Location: Nippert Stadium
  Cincinnati, OH
• Game start: 4:08 p.m. EST
• Elapsed time: 3 hours and 21 minutes
• Game attendance: 37,978
• Game weather: 52 °F (11 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: N 6 MPH
• Referee: Hank Johns
• TV announcers (ABC): Joe Tessitore (play-by-play), Greg McElroy (analyst), and Katie George (sideline)

     

Scoring summary

1	11:55	HOU	Dalton Witherspoon 37-yard field goal (7 plays, 50 yards, 2:57)	HOU 3–0
	9:38	CIN	Tyler Scott 25-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Christian Lowery kick) (5 plays, 82 yards, 2:11)	CIN 7–3
	4:23	HOU	Tank Dell 16-yard pass from Clayton Tune (Dalton Witherspoon kick) (10 plays, 74 yards, 5:07)	HOU 10–7
	4:06	CIN	Jerome Ford 79-yard run (Christian Lowery kick) (1 play, 79 yards, 0:11)	CIN 14–10
2	11:40	HOU	Dalton Witherspoon 46-yard field goal (13 plays, 44 yards, 7:21)	CIN 14–13
3	12:02	CIN	Leonard Taylor 8-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (6 plays, 75 yards, 2:58)	CIN 21–13
	11:04	CIN	Alec Pierce 21-yard pass from Desmond Ridder (Christian Lowery kick) (2 plays, 23 yards, 0:41)	CIN 28–13
	7:38	CIN	Jerome Ford 42-yard run (Christian Lowery kick) (3 plays, 62 yards, 1:18)	CIN 35–13
4	6:06	HOU	Jake Herslow 7-yard pass from Clayton Tune (Dalton Witherspoon kick) (13 plays, 90 yards, 7:28)	CIN 35–20

Statistics	HOU	CIN
First downs	22	14
Total yards	336	400
Rushing yards	86	210
Passing yards	250	190
Time of possession	40:19	19:41

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
HOU	Passing	Clayton Tune	17/26, 250 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Alton McCaskill	13 carries, 39 yards
	Receiving	Tank Dell	9 receptions, 152 yards, 1 TD
CIN	Passing	Desmond Ridder	11/17, 190 yards, 3 TD
	Rushing	Jerome Ford	18 carries, 187 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Alec Pierce	2 receptions, 65 yards, 1 TD

Vs. No. 1 Alabama

See also: 2021 Alabama Crimson Tide football team and 2021 Cotton Bowl Classic

Cotton Bowl – CFP Semifinal

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 4 Bearcats	3	0	3	0	6
• No. 1 Crimson Tide	7	10	0	10	27

• Date: December 31, 2021
• Location: AT&T Stadium
  Arlington, TX
• Game start: 2:40 p.m. CST
• Elapsed time: 3:18
• Game attendance: 76,313
• Game weather: Indoors
• Referee: Steve Strimling
• TV announcers (ESPN/ESPN Radio): Sean McDonough (play-by-play), Todd Blackledge (analyst), Molly McGrath, and Laura Rutledge (sidelines)/Shawn Kelley (play-by-play), Barrett Jones (analyst), and Ian Fitzsimmons (sideline)

Scoring summary

1
2
3
4

Statistics	CIN	ALA
First downs	13	27
Total yards	218	482
Rushing yards	74	301
Passing yards	144	181
Time of possession	26:19	33:41

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
CIN	Passing	Desmond Ridder	17/32 144 yards
	Rushing	Jerome Ford	15 rushes, 77 yards
	Receiving	Michael Young Jr.	4 receptions, 55 yards
ALA	Passing	Bryce Young	17/28, 181 yards, 3 TD, INT
	Rushing	Brian Robinson Jr.	26 rushes, 204 yards
	Receiving	Ja'Corey Brooks	4 receptions, 66 yards, TD

Rankings

Further information: 2021 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
( ) = First-place votes

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Final
AP	8	7	8	8	7	5	3	2	2	2	2	3	4	3	4 (3)	4
Coaches	10	8	8	9	8	6	4	3	2	2	3	3	4	4	4 (3)	4
CFP	Not released									6	5	5	4	4	4	Not released

After the season

Awards and AAC honors

Weekly Awards Player Award Date Awarded Ref. Deshawn Pace Defensive Player of the Week September 20, 2021 [24] Desmond Ridder Offensive Player of the Week October 4, 2021 [25] Jerome Ford Offensive Player of the Week October 11, 2021 [26] Jerome Ford (2) Offensive Player of the Week October 18, 2021 [27] Desmond Ridder (2) Offensive Player of the Week November 22, 2021 [28] Sauce Gardner Defensive Player of the Week November 29, 2021 [29] American Athletic Conference Individual Awards Player Award Ref. Desmond Ridder AAC Offensive Player of the Year [30] Sauce Gardner* AAC Defensive Player of the Year Luke Fickell AAC Coach of the Year Individual Yearly Awards Player Award Ref. Luke Fickell Home Depot Coach of the Year Award [31] AFCA Regional Coach of the Year [32] Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year [33] Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year [34] AFCA Coach of the Year [35] Bear Bryant Award [36] Coby Bryant Jim Thorpe Award [37]

All-AAC Player Position Team Dylan O’Quinn OT 1 Lorenz Metz OG 1 Jake Renfro C 1 Desmond Ridder QB 1 Jerome Ford RB 1 Curtis Brooks DL 1 Myjai Sanders* DL 1 Darrian Beavers LB 1 Joel Dublanko LB 1 Sauce Gardner* CB 1 Coby Bryant CB 1 Bryan Cook S 1 Alec Pierce WR 2 Marcus Brown DL Hon. Deshawn Pace LB Hon. Josh Whyle TE Hon. Reference:[30] * Denotes Unanimous Selection

All-Americans

NCAA Recognized All-American Honors

Player	AFCA[38]	AP[39]	FWAA[40]	TSN[41]	WCFF[42]	Designation
Coby Bryant	1st	2nd		2nd	1st
Sauce Gardner	1st	1st	1st	1st	2nd	Consensus
The NCAA recognizes a selection to all five of the AP, AFCA, FWAA, TSN and WCFF first teams for unanimous selections and three of five for consensus selections.

Other All-American Honors

Player	Athletic[43]	Athlon	BR	CBS Sports[44]	CFN	ESPN[45]	FOX Sports	Phil Steele	SI	USA Today[46]
Coby Bryant				2nd						2nd
Sauce Gardner	1st			1st		1st				1st

All Star games

See also: 2022 Senior Bowl

NFL draft

See also: 2022 NFL draft

The NFL Draft was held in Las Vegas, Nevada on April 28–30, 2022. The nine picks are a school record and were the third most of any school in this year's draft.^[47]

Bearcats picked in the 2022 NFL Draft:

Round	Pick	Player	Position	NFL Team
1	4	Sauce Gardner	CB	New York Jets
2	53	Alec Pierce	WR	Indianapolis Colts
2	62	Bryan Cook	S	Kansas City Chiefs
3	74	Desmond Ridder	QB	Atlanta Falcons
3	100	Myjai Sanders	DE	Arizona Cardinals
4	109	Coby Bryant	CB	Seattle Seahawks
5	156	Jerome Ford	RB	Cleveland Browns
6	182	Darrian Beavers	LB	New York Giants
6	216	Curtis Brooks	DT	Indianapolis Colts