The Cincinnati Bearcats football team represents the University of Cincinnati in college football. They compete at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level as members of the Big 12 Conference. They have played their home games at Nippert Stadium since 1901. The Bearcats have an all-time record of over .500, having reached their 600th program victory in 2017.
The Bearcats were largely independent for the 19th and 20th century, with sporadic membership in four conferences, the longest of which was their 12 years with the Missouri Valley Conference in the 1950s and 60s. The team briefly dropped down to Division 1-AA (now Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS)) in 1982 and 1983, and later joined Conference USA in 1996. They would move to the Big East in 2005, and remain with the conference when it split into the American Athletic in 2013. The Bearcats joined the Big 12 in 2023.
Cincinnati has won 16 conference championships across six difference conferences, most recently in 2021 as a member of the American Athletic Conference. That year they also qualified for the College Football Playoff, the only non-power team to do so during the tournament's four-team playoff structure. The Bearcats have also played in three non-playoff New Year's Six bowl games, and 23 bowl games overall.
History
Early history (1885–1983) The Bearcat football program is one of the nation's oldest, having fielded a team as early as 1885. In 1888, Cincinnati played Miami in the first intercollegiate football game held within the state of Ohio. That began a rivalry which today ranks as the eighth-oldest and 11th-longest running in NCAA Division I college football.,
Robert Burch served as Cincinnati's head coach from 1909 to 1911, compiling a record of 16–8–2. It was during his tenure that Cincinnati joined the Ohio Athletic Conference, where they would remain until 1927. In March 1927, George Babcock was hired as a professor of athletics and physical training at the University of Cincinnati. From 1927 to 1930, he was the head football coach of the Bearcats football, compiling a 12–21–3 record. Sid Gillman, a member of the college and National Football League hall of fame shrines, was the architect of one of the top eras of Cincinnati football history. He directed the Bearcats to three conference titles and a pair of bowl game appearances during his six seasons (1949–54) before leaving for the professional ranks. Cincinnati, with Gillman developing the passing offenses which would make him successful in the pro ranks, became known for its aerial attack in the early 1950s. George Blackburn served as the Bearcats' head coach from 1955 to 1960, compiling a 25–27–6 record. It was during Blackburn's tenure, in 1957, that the Bearcats joined the Missouri Valley Conference, where they would remain until 1969.
Chuck Studley left UMass and became the Bearcats' 25th head football coach. Under Studley's tutelage, the Bearcats won two conference championships in 1963 and 1964, However, Studley's teams struggled in his other four seasons and Studley was replaced after the 1966 season. Oklahoma assistant coach Homer Rice was hired as Studley's replacement. After Rice accepted the head coaching position at Cincinnati, Oklahoma's head coach Jim Mackenzie died of a massive heart attack. Upon Mackenzie's death, Oklahoma's athletic director and president called Homer Rice to request that he return to replace Mackenzie as head coach at Oklahoma. Rice had already hired his staff at Cincinnati and turned down the Oklahoma job to stay committed to his staff at Cincinnati. Rice compiled an 8–10–1 record in his two seasons at Cincinnati. In 1968, the Bearcats were the nation's top passing team. Quarterback Greg Cook was the NCAA's total offense leader with receiver/kicker Jim O'Brien the national scoring champ. A year later, Cook earned Rookie of the Year honors as a Cincinnati Bengal. Two years later, O'Brien kicked the game-winning field goal for the Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl V. Ray Callahan was promoted from assistant coach to head coach after Rice's departure. After a 4–6 campaign in his first season, Callahan's Bearcats posted back to back 7–4 records in 1970 and 1971. However, a 2–9 season in 1972 ended his tenure at Cincinnati.
UC's fortunes turned around under head coach Tony Mason, who led the Bearcats for four seasons and compiled a 25–19 record. Mason's Bearcats started slow, but enjoyed an 8–3 campaign in 1976, after which Mason was offered the head coaching position at Arizona, which he accepted. Ohio State assistant coach Ralph Staub was hired as Mason's replacement, and the Bearcats stumbled mightily. Staub's Bearcats posted records of 5–4–2, 5–6, 2–9 and 2–9 for a total of 14–28–2. Staub was fired following the 1980 season. Staub was replaced by Mike Gottfried, who had been head coach at Murray State the previous four seasons. Gottfried was able to improve UC's fortunes, posting back-to-back 6–5 records in 1981 and 1982, however, Gottfried left UC for the head coaching position at Kansas after just two seasons. Gottfried's record at UC is 12–10. Due to an NCAA decision to mandate average attendance of 20,000 for Division I-A programs, Cincinnati was relegated to NCAA Division I-AA for the 1983 season due to consistently low attendance figures. Vanderbilt offensive coordinator Watson Brown, brother of legendary coach Mack Brown, replaced Gottfried but he too, left after only a short period of time. Brown's 1983 squad posted a 4–6–1 record. Brown resigned after the 1983 season to accept the position of head football coach at Rice.
Dave Currey era (1984–1988) Long Beach State head coach Dave Currey was hired as Brown's replacement, and the Bearcats' struggles returned. Currey failed to post a single winning season as UC's head coach and, after a 3–8 campaign in 1988, Currey resigned following NCAA sanctions for violating rules around scholarships, financial aid and recruiting.
Tim Murphy era (1989–1993)
Maine head coach Tim Murphy was hired to replace Currey in 1989. Despite one-win seasons in both of his first two seasons, Murphy was able to slowly but surely turn things around for the Bearcats, compiling an 8–3 record in 1993.
Murphy elected to leave Cincinnati after the 1993 season for the head coaching position at Harvard. Murphy left UC with a 17–37–1 record.
Rick Minter era (1994–2003) Notre Dame defensive coordinator Rick Minter was selected as the Bearcats head coach after Murphy's departure. Minter's Bearcats enjoyed mild success, reaching four bowl games (winning one) and posting six winning seasons in Minter's ten-season tenure. It was during Minter's tenure that Cincinnati joined Conference USA, where they would remain until 2004. Minter remained UC's head coach until after the 2003 season, when he was fired following a 5–7 season. Minter left UC with a 53–63–1 record.
Mark Dantonio era (2004–2006)
Ohio State defensive coordinator Mark Dantonio was named head coach at Cincinnati on December 23, 2003. Dantonio became the first head coach in 23 years to lead the school to a winning season in his first season at UC. The Bearcats' 7–5 record included a 5–3 record in Conference USA, which was good enough for a second-place finish. The Bearcats finished the season on a winning note with a 32–14 win over Marshall in the PlainsCapital Fort Worth Bowl.
During Dantonio's time at UC, he led the Bearcats to a bowl game victory and directed the team's transition into the Big East Conference in 2005, where they would remain until 2012. As head coach, Dantonio had 15 players earn all-conference honors and 25 received conference academic recognition., Dantonio's Bearcats posted a 4–7 mark in 2005 which was followed by an 8–5 campaign in 2006.
Dantonio left UC after the 2006 season to accept the head coaching position at Michigan State.
Brian Kelly era (2007–2009)
Central Michigan head coach Brian Kelly was named head coach on December 3, 2006, following the departure of Mark Dantonio. In an unusual move, Cincinnati elected not to appoint an interim coach and asked Kelly to assume his duties immediately by coaching the Bearcats in their bowl game. Central Michigan was also preparing for a bowl appearance, so while Kelly was in Cincinnati preparing the Bearcats, much of his staff remained at Central Michigan to coach the Chippewas. Following Central Michigan's 31–14 win in the Motor City Bowl on December 26, his staff joined him and went on to coach Cincinnati to a 27–24 victory over Western Michigan University in that year's International Bowl on January 6. Cincinnati's victory gave Kelly the unique distinction of having defeated the same team twice in a season as coach of two teams (Central Michigan had defeated Western Michigan 31–7 earlier that season).
In his first full season, Kelly led Cincinnati to a competitive position in the Big East, the Bearcats' second ever 10-win season (its first since 1949), and a Top 25 ranking. On December 5, 2007, Kelly was named Big East Coach of the Year, after leading the Bearcats to a 9–3 record. Kelly led the Bearcats to a 31–21 victory in the PapaJohns.com Bowl over Southern Miss.
In 2008, Kelly led Cincinnati to its first ever outright Big East title with key wins over West Virginia and Pittsburgh. The Bearcats had never defeated either in Big East conference play. Kelly became the first coach to win all three of the Bearcats' traveling trophies— the Victory Bell (Miami [OH]), the Keg of Nails (Louisville), and the River City Rivalry Trophy (Pitt). The Bearcats played in the Orange Bowl versus the ACC champion, Virginia Tech, on January 1, 2009, but lost 20–7 to finish the season 11–3.
After beginning the 2009 season unranked in all polls, the Bearcats reeled off 12 straight victories and finished the regular season undefeated. Going into the bowl season, they were ranked No. 3 in the BCS Standings and faced the Florida Gators in the Sugar Bowl. Kelly did not coach the team in the 51–24 loss to Florida because he accepted the head coach position at Notre Dame.
Among the honors that Cincinnati football achieved in 2009, was the highest academic rating among teams in the top 10 of the BCS standings, according to the 2009 Graduation Success Rates. Cincinnati, which was fifth in the BCS standings, checked in with a 75% NCAA graduation rate and a 71% federal government rate, the only team in the BCS top 10 to surpass 70% in both. Kelly finished his tenure at Cincinnati with a 34–6 record.
Butch Jones era (2010–2012) On December 16, 2009, Central Michigan head coach Butch Jones was named head coach of the Cincinnati Bearcats. The hiring was an odd coincidence, as Jones had also replaced Brian Kelly as head coach at Central Michigan.
Jones led the Bearcats to records of 4–8 in 2010 and 10–3 in 2011, including a Big East championship, a Liberty Bowl victory over Vanderbilt, and he was named Big East Coach of the Year. Also in 2011, Cincinnati was the only program to win both its conference championship as well as the league's team academic award.
Jones led the Bearcats to a 9–3 regular season record in 2012, leading them to the Belk Bowl in Charlotte to play against Duke University, a game Cincinnati won. Twenty days prior to the bowl game, on December 7, 2012, Jones announced to the team that he would be resigning to accept the job as head football coach at Tennessee, after declining offers from Colorado, Purdue, and others.
Tommy Tuberville era (2013–2016)