The University of Cincinnati Bearcat’s football team was taken down by the Temple University Owls 35-24 on Friday night at Nippert Stadium.
After having lost five games in a row, the Bearcats rebounded last week with a win against the Tulane University Green Wave. For the players, having the taste of victory still fresh in their mouths made the loss even more painful.
“It’s football,” said senior linebacker Jaylyin Minor. “You can be on one week and be off the next. It just comes with the game. It’s the little things. When it comes down to the defense, you have to do almost every little thing right. One person or one gap leads to a big play. We all have to be on key.”
The Bearcats found themselves in a hole early, as they failed to put a point on the board in the first half, in part due to the nine times they were flagged for infractions.
Temple rolled into halftime with a 13-0 lead.
They were able to outscore Temple in the second half, though it was not enough to erase the deficit and come back for the win.
“I’m very disappointed in the way we really handled this whole situation and completed this game,” said head coach Luke Fickell. “I’m disappointed in the way we coached. I’m disappointed in the way we prepared them. I mean, I don’t know. Just to not be able to put things together from working this hard as we do, I’m a little bit lost for words. At some point in time we got to find a way — we keep talking about penalties. We keep talking about these situations and the things we got to do better and then, yet we continue to do the same the same things over and over again.”
While the Bearcats’ defense was able to negate Temple from making any big plays, the same could not be said for special teams.
The third unit, which Fickell has harped the importance of all year long, surrendered a 98-yard kickoff return for a touchdown after the Bearcats had cut the lead to six. It was the closest UC would get on the scoreboard the rest of the game.
Despite the loss, junior quarterback Hayden Moore set a career high with 75 rushing yards, while also tallying 217 yards and two scores through the air.
The loss dropped the Bearcats to 3-7, officially eliminating them from bowl eligibility. Senior running back Mike Boone said the team is determined to get the most they can out of the final two games of the season.
“We got two more games,” Boone said. “We got to just continue doing what we do. We are going to come out with a great attitude and we’ll get back to work. And of course, win the last two games. Just not have everybody hang their heads, we just come out and play.”
Cincinnati travels to Greenville, North Carolina to take on the East Carolina University Pirates on Saturday. A game time has yet to be announced.