TicketsUC Gridders Seek 3-0 Start vs. Temple
Saturday's clash could turn into a defensive battle.
Contact: Tom Hathaway
9/15/2003
Rick Minter leaves the West Virginia victory sporting the chain which the UC defense has adopted as its symbol for 2003. |
The Story Line
The University of Cincinnati seeks a 3-0 start to the 2003 football season when the Bearcats host Temple on Saturday, Sept. 20. Kickoff at Nippert Stadium is 7 p.m.
The Bearcats enter Saturday?s contest with the momentum of last weekend?s 15-13 victory over West Virginia, UC?s first ever over the Mountaineers in 14 meetings. Cincinnati is 2-0 in 2003, having defeated East Carolina, 40-3, in its season opener.
Temple, idle last weekend, is 0-2, having lost to Penn State (23-10) and Villanova (23-20).
Though the Owls have surrendered an average of 355 yards in their first two games, they have been building a reputation for their defense. Temple has ranked among the top 20 teams in total defense in each of the last two seasons (18th in 2002, 19th in 2001).
Cincinnati enters the game boasting the nation?s fifth-stingiest defense in average yards allowed (223.0) and is sixth nationally in points allowed (8.0). The Bearcats enter the week ranked 24th nationally in rushing defense and 10th in pass efficiency defense.
Rick Minter will seek to become Cincinnati?s winningest head football coach. With last week?s victory over West Virginia, Minter matched the win record of 50 set by Sid Gillman in 1949-54.
Cincinnati is receiving votes in both national polls. The Bearcats drew five voting points in the Associated Press poll and four in the USA Today/ESPN poll.
Temple will be Cincinnati?s second straight Big East opponent, following last weekend?s 15-13 win over West Virginia. The Bearcats have defeated the last four Big East foest they have faced and are 5-5 vs. the Big East under Rick Minter.
The Bearcats will be seeking their first 3-0 start since 1985 when the team opened with wins over Virginia Tech, Austin Peay and Youngstown State.
Saturday?s victory over West Virginia extended Cincinnati?s string of regular season victories to four, matching a streak set in 2000. The last time UC won five straight games was in 1995.
The Bearcat defense held West Virginia to 118 yards rushing in last weekend?s win. The Mountaineers entered the game averaging 261.5 yards on the ground. Cincinnati limited East Carolina to just 57 yards rushing in the season opener.
Other Game Features
? Skyline Chili 2-for-1: Skyline Chili is offering coupons which may be redeemed for a two-for-one price ticket purchase. The coupons, available at all area Skyline locations, provide for one free ticket for the Temple game with the purchase of a ticket at regular price.
? Cattitude on the Commons: This pregame event returns as a feature before all Cincinnati home games, beginning two and a half hours before kickoff. Admission is free.
Series
Saturday?s game will be the 14th meeting between Cincinnati and Temple. The Owls hold a 9-3-1 lead in the series, which began in 1973. The teams are an even 2-2-1 in Cincinnati, 1-1-1 at Nippert Stadium. Saturday?s game will be the first in Nippert since 1981.
Other Series Notes
? The 1983 Cincinnati-Temple game featured a quick uniform change. Moments before taking the field, the Bearcats were surprised with new black jerseys to wear instead of their traditional red. Cincinnati went on to post a 31-16 victory over the Owls and the black jerseys became a staple of UC uniforms. The Bearcats returned to red jerseys this season.
The Coaches
Rick Minter (Henderson State ?77) is in his 10th season at Cincinnati, easily the longest coaching tenure in UC history. Minter is 50-56-1 (.472) in his coaching career, notching Sid Gillman?s UC standard of coaching victories. Minter has directed UC to four bowl game appearances in the last six seasons and last year directed the Bearcats to their first league title since 1964. Prior to coming to Cincinnati in 1994, Minter served as an assistant coach for 16 years at Notre Dame, Ball State, New Mexico State, North Carolina State, Louisiana Tech, Arkansas and Henderson State.
Bobby Wallace (Mississippi St. ?76) is in his sixth season at Temple where he has compiled a 16-42 record. Under his guidance, the Owls finished among the top 20 teams nationally in total defense in each of the past two seasons. Wallace has a 16-year career record of 98-78-1. He was 82-36-1 in 10 seasons at North Alabama, directing the school to six Division II playoff appearances and three national titles.
The Weakest Link
Bearcat players and coaches can be seen proudly carrying a heavy towing chain to and from Cincinnati practices and swinging it proudly after victories. The chain was introduced by co-defensive coordinators Mark Criner and Mike Kolakowski during preseason practice to remind the defenders that the unit was only as strong as its weakest link. Each day, a different member of the defense is responsible for taking care of the chain.
Guidugli Continues His Climb
Gino Guidugli continues his climb through the Cincinnati career records lists. The junior quarterback, who over the past two seasons has rewritten the Cincinnati single season records for passing and total offense, surpassed the record for career touchdown passes last Saturday when he tossed his 40th. He moved ahead of Danny McCoin, who had 39 TD tosses in 1984-87. Guidugli also moved into second place in career passing yardage last weekend. He now has 6,383 career passing yards. Guidugli could own all of the UC career passing and total offense records by the end of the season.
Guidugli the Runner?>
Gino Guidugli is respected for his ability as a passing quarterback. Rushing has been another matter. The junior signal caller entered the season with a career rushing total of minus-48 yards. Guidugli has rushed for 62 yards in the Bearcats? first two games, including a personal single game best of 45 yards vs. East Carolina, to move into the positive figure column in career rushing yards with 14.
More Guidugli Improvement
Gino Guidugli threw 21 interceptions during the 2002 season, giving him the UC record in that category. This season, Guidugli has yet to throw an interception.
All Purpose Richard
Richard Hall piled up 133 yards in all-purpose running in Saturday?s win over West Virginia. Hall was UC?s leading rusher, gaining 85 yards on 18 carries. The junior was also the top receiver with four catches for 48 yards. Hall is UC?s leading rusher with 202 yards in the Bearcats? first two games.
Minter Ties Gillman?s Win Record
Tenth year Bearcat head coach Rick Minter tied Sid Gillman?s school record of 50 career coaching victories, set from 1949-54, with Saturday?s win over West Virginia. Minter had already surpassed Gillman?s school mark by taking teams to bowl games in four different seasons while his nine seasons as head coach is also a record.
Minter is one of just two coaches to coach in Conference USA in all eight years of its existence, joining Southern Miss head coach Jeff Bower.
Ground Assault
Despite the fact that the Bearcats entered the 2003 season without their No. 2 career rushing leader, Cincinnati has gotten increased production from its running game this season. UC is ranked seventh nationally in rushing offense, averaging 263 yards per game. Junior Richard Hall is among the nation?s rushing leaders, averaging 101 yards per game.
Cincinnati amassed 361 yards rushing in its season opening victory over East Carolina, the highest single game in 72 games. Redshirt freshman Derrick Eddington ran for 138 yards on 11 carries and Hall added 117 yards in 24 tries, becoming the first duo to top the century mark in the same games since DeMarco McCleskey (25 att., 120 yds.) and Ray Jackson (21, 110) achieved the feat vs. Memphis on Nov. 24, 2001 (17 games).
Noting the West Virginia Win
? Thaddeus Lewis had perhaps the best game for a UC punt return specialist since the Tinker Keck era. Lewis returned four punts for 42 yards, which included a 22-yard return. In addition, he had a return of over 40 yards nullified by penalty.
? Chet Ervin played a major role for both the offense and the defense. The sophomore booted three field goals of 44, 43 and 37 yards to account for 60 percent of the Bearcats? scoring. Ervin punted nine times for a 44.2-yard average to consistently give the defense good field position from which to work.
? John Feaster recorded two solo tackles and a pair of assisted tackles while making his first start at defensive tackle.
Bearcats on Watch Lists
Cincinnati is represented on the preseason watch lists of three prominent national awards:
? Gino Guidugli is on the preseason list of candidates for the Davey O?Brien Award, recognizing the nation?s top quarterback.
? Trent Cole is a member of the preseason list of candidates for the Ted Hendricks Defensive End of the Year Award.
? Josh Shneyderov has been named to the preseason watch list for the Dave Rimington Award, honoring college football?s top center.
Guidugli has attracted other lofty accolades. He was rated the No. 13 quarterback nationally by The Sporting News while Phil Steele?s College Football ranked him No. 23. Street & Smith?s named Guidugli to its honorable mention All-American team and tagged him the Best Under Pressure and Best Quarterback in Conference USA.
Cole was ranked No. 58 nationally among defensive ends by Phil Steele?s.
Shneyderov was the 16th rated center by The Sporting News.
Other Bearcats to draw preseason honors:
? Jamar Enzor: 52nd rated linebacker (Phil Steele's).
? Chet Ervin: second team All-C-USA (Lindy?s).
? Andre Frazier: fourth team All-C-USA (Phil Steele's).
? Richard Hall: third team All-C-USA (Phil Steele's).
? Doug Monahgan: 12th rated strong safety (Sporting News), 13th rated strong safety (Phil Steele's), first team All C-USA (Phil Steele's, C-USA Coaches).
? George Murray II: second team All C-USA (Phil Steele's).
? Zach Norton: C-USA Best Cover Corner (Lindy's), first team All C-USA (Athlon, Lindy's, Sporting News).
? Lonnie Simmons: fourth team All C-USA (Phil Steele's).
? Kyle Takavitz: C-USA Best Pass Blocker (Lindy's), first team All C-USA (Athlon, Lindy's, Sporting News).
Cincinnati Grid Success
While last year?s Conference USA championship was the first for Cincinnati in any conference since the Bearcats won the Missouri Valley Conference title in 1964, it is by no means the only showing of the program?s recent success. Cincinnati finished second in the 2000 and 2001 C-USA races and is the only team to finish in the top two in the standings in each of the past three seasons. Additionally, UC has participated in bowl games in four of the past six seasons.
All-Around Success at UC
The Cincinnati athletic department continues to show the success of its program. Last year, UC was one of just three schools to send its four major sports (football, men?s and women?s basketball and volleyball) to NCAA postseason play (Texas and Notre Dame were the others). Additionally, UC is the only program to accomplish this feat three years in a row.
The 2002-03 athletic year was a banner year for UC as the Bearcats had seven different teams advance to postseason play and two claim Conference USA championships. UC teams compiled a 220-145-6 won-loss record for a .601 winning percentage, the eighth-best performance for the Bearcats in 33 years of combined men?s and women?s participation.
UC Academic Success Recognized
The Bearcat football program continues to be honored for its high graduation rate. Earlier this summer, Cincinnati was one of 31 NCAA Division I-A schools to be recognized by the American Football Coaches Association for having a graduation rate in excess of 70 percent for the class of freshman student-athletes which entered UC for the 1997-98 academic year. Last year, UC ranked 16th in the nation, and second in Conference USA, with a 73 percent overall graduation rate, 78 percent of UC African-American student-athletes earning their degrees.
Schedule Change
Since the printing of the media guides and schedule cards, Cincinnati?s Nov. 1 game at USF has been switched to Friday, Oct. 31. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30. The move was made to add the game to the ESPN2 telecast series.
Nine in the NFL
Nine former University of Cincinnati grid standouts were on the rosters of NFL teams when the 2003 season opened. The eight Bearcat pros are:
? Blue Adams, CB, Tampa Bay
? Antonio Chatman, WR Green Bay
? Troy Evans, LB, Houston Texans
? Jason Fabini, OT, New York Jets
? Sam Garnes, DB, New York Jets
? Artrell Hawkins, DB, Cincinnati Bengals
? Ray Jackson, RB, Cincinnati Bengals
? Rod Monroe, TE, Cleveland Browns
? Antwan Peek, LB, Houston Texans
Fabini and Garnes are in the starting lineup of the New York Jets, Fabini at offensive tackle and Garnes in the secondary.
A total of 19 former Bearcats were in NFL preseason training camps when practice began this summer.
Looking Ahead
The Bearcats visit the Miami University RedHawks on Sept. 27 for the 108th edition of their historic rivalry. Kickoff at Oxford, Ohio is 2 p.m. EDT.