TicketsUC Tries to Cap Turnaround in Bowl
Bearcats meet a Marshall team which has had a similar season.
Contact: Tom Hathaway
12/18/2004
The University of Cincinnati will try to put a fitting conclusion to one of the greatest turnarounds of a football season in the school?s rich grid history when the Bearcats face Marshall in the PlainsCapital Fort Worth Bowl.
Cincinnati and Marshall will clash in the second annual PlainsCapital Fort Worth Bowl on Thursday, Dec. 23 at 6:30 p.m. EST. The game will be televised nationally by ESPN.
UC reached the bowl game?its fourth in the last five seasons?by staging one of the greatest turnarounds of its gridiron fortunes. The Bearcats rebounded from a 2-4 start to win four of their final five games against teams which had a combined record of 18-9 at the time UC played them. The effort boosted UC into a four-way tie for second place in Conference USA with a 5-3 ledger and gave UC an overall mark of 6-5.
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Marshall, also 6-5, followed a similar path to reaching the PlainsCapital Fort Worth Bowl. After dropping their first three games to Troy, Ohio State and Georgia, by a combined total of 15 points, the Thundering Herd won five in a row. Marshall finished in a tie for second place in the Mid-American Conference East Division with a 6-2 league ledger.
Cincinnati and Marshall last met in the 2000 Motor City Bowl in Pontiac, Mich. The Bearcats jumped out to a 14-9 halftime lead but the Herd came back for a 25-14 victory.
Cincinnati is making its fourth bowl game appearance in the past five years and eighth bowl game overall. The Bearcats appeared in the 2000 and 2001 Motor City Bowls and the 2002 New Orleans Bowl.
Marshall is making its seventh bowl appearance in the last eight years. The Herd played in four Motor City Bowls (1997-00) and in two GMAC Bowls (2001-02).
The game will be played at Amon G. Carter Stadium on the campus of Texas Christian University. Cincinnati is 0-1 in its only previous game in the stadiuim, a loss to TCU in 2003.
UC vs. Marshall
Their PlainsCapital Fort Worth Bowl clash will be the 10th meeting between Cincinnati and Marshall, and the second straight in a bowl game. The two last squared off in the 2000 Motor City Bowl in Pontiac, Mich. Marshall overcame a 14-9 halftime deficit to defeat the Bearcats, 25-14. Cincinnati owns a 5-3-1 advantage in the series, which began in 1906 with a 0-0 tie.
Common Opponents
The Bearcats and Thundering Herd have played two common opponents, with similar results.
? Cincinnati opened the season with a 27-6 loss to No. 9 Ohio State. Marshall lost to the Buckeyes, 24-21, the following week.
? The Bearcats crushed Miami (Ohio), 45-26, in the second week of the season. Marshall topped Miami, 33-25, during week No. 4 of the season.
Bowl Foes
Seven of Cincinnati?s 11 opponents were selected for bowl games, with UC posting a 3-4 mark against those teams. The Bearcats? 2004 foes compiled a 65-57 record. The teams which UC defeated were a combined 33-34.
Marshall faced five teams that are playing in bowls, going 1-4 against those teams. Marshall?s 2004 opponents were a combined 57-65. The teams which Marshall defeated were a combined 20-48.
Texas is UC?s Home Turf
As the representative of Conference USA, Cincinnati is designated as the home team for the PlainsCapital Fort Worth Bowl and will wear its home black uniforms. That designation might be fitting since the Bearcats will be playing their 24th football game in the state of Texas while Marshall will be playing its first-ever tilt in the Lone Star state.
The Dec. 23 bowl game will be UC?s second appearance in Fort Worth and second contest at the Amon Carter Stadium. UC fell to TCU, 43-6, in 2003. The Bearcats have also played at Houston (3-8), North Texas (3-4-1), Hardin-Simmons (1-0), Texas A&M (1-0) and Texas Tech (0-0-1).
Marshall was scheduled to play at Amon Carter Stadium against TCU in September, 2001, but was cancelled due to the 9/11 national tragedies.
Bearcats Share Second Place
Cincinnati finished in a four-way tie for second place in Conference USA, sharing league runner-up honors with Memphis, UAB and Southern Miss. UC beat Memphis and Southern Miss but lost to UAB. The Bearcats have finished in the top two of C-USA play in four of the last five seasons, the most top-two finishes of any C-USA team. UC won the co-championship in 2002.
Offensive Milestones of 2004
? Cincinnati topped the 40-point mark four times this season. This feat was last accomplished in 1953 when the Sid Gillman-coached Bearcats topped 40 points five times. UC?s 312 points scored this season is the fifth-highest single season total in school history.
? Cincinnati topped the 500-yard mark in total offense in three different games during the 2004 campaign. UC rolled up 599 yards vs. Miami (Ohio), the fifth-highest single game total in school history. The Bearcats? 577 yards vs. USF matched the sixth-highest single game total.
? Gino Guidugli topped the 300-yard passing plateau three times, recording a career-best 377 yards vs. USF, the sixth-highest output by a UC passer.
? Guidugli set a school record by passing for five touchdowns vs. Southern Miss. Three of those TD passes went to Hannibal Thomas, who tied the single game mark for TD receptions.
? Guidugli?s 24 touchdown passes is the second-best single season total, one shy of the UC record of 25 set by Greg Cook in 1968.
? Hannibal Thomas had four 100-yard receiving games.
? Brent Celek established a new season record for touchdown receptions by a tight end with seven.
? Richard Hall enters the PlainsCapital Fort Worth Bowl with 950 yards rushing, needing 50 yards to post the 13th 1,000-yard rushing season in UC history.
Bearcat Defense Responds
The Cincinnati defense responded well to the challenge of stopping nationally-ranked offensive attacks during its winning streak.
? The Bearcats held Memphis, No. 8 in total offense (477.7), to 202 yards, limiting the Tigers? No. 10-ranked passing attack (283.2) to 113 yards.
? UC contained Memphis? DeAngelo Williams, who was No. 7 nationally in rushing (147.3) to 57 yards. Tiger QB Danny Wimprine, No. 14 in total offense (275.0) managed just 37 yards vs. the Bearcats.
? UC held TCU, which entered the game with the nation?s No. 11 scoring offense (35.9 points per game), to 10 points and kept NCAA scoring leader Lonta Hobbs out of the end zone.
? Hobbs, No. 32 nationally in rushing (94.5 yards), was limited to 49 yards.
? Against Southern Miss, the UC special teams contained John Eubanks, who entered the game leading the nation in kickoff returns. Eubanks, who was averaging 34.4 yards per return, managed just 42 yards on two returns and had no yards in four punt returns. Bearcat sophomore Greg Moore forced Eubanks to fumble a kickoff in the first quarter which led to UC?s first touchdown.
Gino on a Roll
Prior to his hand injury which forced him to miss the season finale at Louisville, Gino Guidugli was playing some of the best football of his four-year career. During the Bearcats? four-game win streak, Guidugli completed 71 percent of his passes for 1,022 yards with 12 touchdowns and no INTs. He had a passing efficiency rating of 189.09 during that span to raise his season efficiency to 148.03. Guidugli set a new UC record when he threw five touchdown passes in the Nov. 6 win over Southern Miss. On Nov. 20, he passed for a career-high 377 yards vs. USF, the sixth-highest total by a Bearcat. With 24 touchdown passes, he is one shy of the UC single season record of 25 set by Greg Cook in 1968.
Guidugli Tops Passing Marks.
Every time Gino Guidugli throws a pass, he sets a new Cincinnati career record, and also closes in on a Conference USA record. The senior quarterback has broken all of the UC career passing and total offense records. Guidugli ranks second in every C-USA career passing category.
A Look at the Win Streak
There were several factors involved in Cincinnati?s mid-season turnaround. You might say it was a total team effort:
? UC averaged 460.3 yards per game in total offense, up from the average of 406.8 in the first six games.
? The Bearcats were more efficient on offense, averaging 41.8 points over the last four games compared to 23.0 in the first six contests.
? UC?s defense surrendered averages of 307.7 yards and 16.8 points during the win streak. The Bearcats had surrendered 374.7 yards and 28.2 points over their first six games.
? The Bearcats played near mistake-free football during this span, holding a 6-1 advantage in turnovers.
? The four teams that Cincinnati defeated had a combined record of 18-9 entering the game vs. the Bearcats, and UC has defeated those opponents by an average of 25.0 points.
Season Similarities
After Cincinnati lost to Army on Oct. 9 to fall to 2-4, Bearcat senior quarterback Gino Guidugli reminded his teammates and coaches on the plane ride home that UC was in a similar situation in 2002. That team had fallen to 3-5, but reversed its fortunes with a 48-10 win over Memphis. UC won five of its last six contests, the lone loss a 20-19 non-league fray vs. No. 25 Hawaii, to capture the C-USA co-championship and advance to the New Orleans Bowl. This year, the Bearcats began their resurgence with a 49-10 victory over Memphis and won four straight to move into a tie for second place.
Cole No. 4 in TFLs
After leading the nation in tackles for loss for two weeks, Trent Cole is ranked fourth this week, averaging 1.82 TFLs per game. Marshall?s Jonathan Goddard is first, averaging 2.55.
Gino Third Among Active Players
Gino Guidugli, the first Bearcat to top the 10,000-yard marks in career passing and total offense yardage, is third nationally, among active players, in passing yards and in total offense yards. Guidugli has 11,222 career passing yards, trailing Timmy Chang of Hawaii (16,667) and David Greene of Georgia (11,264). Guidugli?s 11,418 yards in total offense is bettered by only by Chang (16,508) and Akron?s Charlie Frye (11,478).
UC Gets 500th Win
Cincinnati recorded the 500th football victory in the history of its program when the Bearcats defeated No. 21 Southern Miss on Nov. 6. UC has compiled a 501-523-51 ledger in its 116 seasons of competition.
UC Claims C-USA Honors
Conference USA Player of the Week honors continued to mount at the University of Cincinnati.
? Gino Guidugli, who passed for 308 yards and a school-record five touchdowns in the 52-24 win over No. 21 Southern Miss on Nov. 6, was named Offensive Player of the Week.
? Guidugli earned Offensive Player of the Week honors for the second straight game after he completed 30 of 36 passes for a career-high 377 yards and three TDs in the 45-23 win over South Florida on Nov. 20.
? Andre Frazier, who keyed the UC defense with eight tackles, four of them solo, and recorded a sack and two tackles for loss in the 21-10 win over TCU on Oct. 30, was named C-USA Defensive Player of the Week.
? Chet Ervin, who punted seven times for a 44.3-yard average vs. TCU and gave the UC defense good field position with five punts on or inside the 20, earned Special Teams Player of the Week honors.
? Trent Cole earned the C-USA Defensive Player of the Week award following his three-sack, four-tackles for loss performance in the Bearcats? 24-19 win over East Carolina on Sept. 25.
? Richard Hall was the C-USA Offensive Player of the Week after his 238-yard, 3 TD rushing effort in the Sept. 11 victory over Miami (Ohio).
Sack Race
Andre Frazier and Trent Cole are competing for positions in the Cincinnati career rankings for sacks and tackles for loss. Frazier is second in career sacks with 21.5, trailing only former teammate Antwan Peek, now with the Houston Texans, who recorded 27 sacks between 1998-02. Frazier is fifth in tackles for loss with 42.5. Cole is third in tackles for loss with 45.0 and fifth in sacks with 17.5.
Milestone March
Several other Bearcats will leave their marks on the defensive records lists:
? Daven Holly is in a six-way tie for fourth place in career interceptions with nine. Last season, Holly tied the UC single season record with six interceptions.
? Doug Monaghan is tied for 10th place in career interceptions with eight.
? Monaghan, with 198 solo tackles, is in sixth place on that career list and is No. 8 on the career total tackles list with 335 total stops.
? Tyjuan Hagler, with 33.5 tackles for loss, is in ninth place on the career list.
Starting Streak
Gino Guidugli had his string of consecutive starts ended at 46 in Cincinnati?s final game of the 2004 season. No other quarterback has made more consecutive starts at UC. A couple of other members of the senior class also have impressive starting stats.
? Kyle Takavitz has started the last 37 games, 14 at right tackle in 2002 and 23 at guard in 2003 and this season.
? Strong safety Doug Monaghan has started 42 of the 44 games in which he has played during his four-year career (he?s missed five games due to injury). Monaghan has a streak of 23 straight starts.
? Left offensive tackle Steve Eastlake has a string of 23 consecutive starts.
What a Start!
Jeremy Jackson, who originally joined the Bearcats as a walk-on and whose service up until mid-season had been limited to appearances on the special teams, has stepped up in a very big way. The senior from Cincinnati got the nod to start at free safety for the Nov. 6 game at Southern Miss. Jackson performed well in his debut, sharing the team lead in tackles with nine. His interception set up UC?s first score in the 52-24 victory.
Celek Sets Mark
Brent Celek has set a UC mark for touchdown receptions by a tight end. The sophomore from Cincinnati has caught seven TD passes, eclipsing the previous high of four set by Darryl Goosby in 1982 and tied by Joe Koynock in 1990. Celek has grabbed a TD pass in three straight games and four of his last five.
Frosh Make Impact on Receiver Corps
Freshmen have been making their impression on the Cincinnati receiver corps.
? True freshman Earnest Jackson, who reported to UC as a quarterback candidate, is the team?s fourth-leading receiver with 20 receptions for 290 yards. He posted career bests of seven receptions for 89 yards vs. UAB on Oct. 2.
? Doug Jones, a redshirt frosh, is the third-leading receiver with 21 catches for 201 yards and a four TDs.
Benton & Bradley?Double Rushing Trouble
The Bearcats have been utilizing a three-headed rushing attack. While senior Richard Hall is the workhorse of the backfield, having gained 950 yards and six TDs, his workload has been lightened by the development of freshmen Butler Benton and Bradley Glatthaar. Benton is the team?s second-leading rusher with 424 yards and four touchdowns. Glatthaar has 267 yards and four TDs. The trio has helped Cincinnati top the 2,000-yard mark in rushing offense for the first time since the 1997 season.
Monaghan Making Catches
Doug Monaghan, owner of a couple of receiving records at his high school (Colerain), revived his pass-catching skills during his four-year career as a starter in the Cincinnati secondary during his collegiate career. The senior strong safety intercepted three passes this season, two in the Sept. 18 Syracuse game, to up his career total to 8 INTs, the tenth-most in UC history.
Block That Kick
The Bearcats continue to add to their reputation for blocking kicks. UC has made four rejections this season. Mike Wright blocked a PAT try in the Sept. 11 Miami game, which was scooped up and returned for a defensive two-point PAT by Daven Holly. Adam Roberts blocked a field goal in the Sept. 18 contest vs. Syracuse. Trent Cole blocked a PAT vs. Army. Tyjuan Hagler deflected a punt in the Nov. 6 win over Southern Miss. Cincinnati blocked five opponent field goals in 2003 and returned two of those for touchdowns.
Hall of a Day
Richard Hall must take the Cincinnati-Miami football rivalry to heart. Hall, who rushed for a career-high 161 yards in the 2003 showdown vs. the RedHawks, topped that this season by gaining 238 yards, the sixth-highest single game rushing total in UC history, in UC?s 45-26 win on Sept. 11. Hall, who scored three touchdowns in the ?oldest rivalry West of the Alleghenies,? put Cincinnati on the scoreboard first with a 70-yard TD run. He later broke free for a 79-yard jaunt, the longest rush in six seasons and tied for the sixth-longest run in UC history, to set up the Bearcats? final TD. For his efforts, Hall was named Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week on Sept. 13.
Thomas Makes Big Plays
Hannibal Thomas continues to make the big plays in the Cincinnati passing game. The senior, who leads the team in receiving (55 receptions, 926 yards, 9 TDs), is ranked 22nd nationally in receiving yards per game (84.2). He needs 74 more yards to become the fourth receiver in UC history to top the 1,000-yard mark.
Thomas matched a career high with 10 receptions in the Nov. 20 win over USF and tied a UC record with three touchdown receptions in the Nov. 6 win over Southern Miss. He finished with seven catches for 168 yards. Thomas caught five passes for a personal best 175 yards, and was on the receiving end of a 69-yard pass play, in the Sept. 11 win over Miami. Dating back to last season, Thomas has 12 TD catches in his last 14 games.
Captains
The Cincinnati squad elected four seniors to serve as captains for 2004. They are Andre Frazier, Daven Holly, Kyle Takavitz, and Gino Guidugli. Frazier and Takavitz served as team captains in 2003.
Bearcats in the Pros
Eight former University of Cincinnati football players were on the rosters of NFL teams after final cuts for the 2004 season were made. The eight are: Antonio Chatman, wide receiver with the Green Bay Packers; Troy Evans, linebacker with the Houston Texans; Jason Fabini, offensive tackle with the New York Jets; Artrell Hawkins, defensive back with the Carolina Panthers; Mario Monds, defensive tackle with the Miami Dolphins; Zach Norton, defensive back with the Baltimore Ravens; Antwan Peek, linebacker with the Houston Texans; and Robert Tate, cornerback with the Arizona Cardinals.
The Graduates
Eight members of the 2004 University of Cincinnati football team have already completed their undergraduate degrees. The eight grads are linebackers Jamar Enzor (bachelor's in criminal justice), Tyjuan Hagler (criminal justice) and Jason Russell (criminal justice), defensive end Andre Frazier (finance), offensive linemen Jeremy Schlicher (architecture), Adam Shorter (history) and Kyle Takavitz (operations management) and cornerback Tedric Harwell (criminal justice). All are working on second degrees this fall. In addition, offensive lineman Clint Stickdorn has just one class to complete this fall for his degree in marketing. Only four other schools have more graduates playing for them this fall.
Awards Lists
The University of Cincinnati was well-represented on the watch lists for several of the national player of the year awards.
Lombardi Award Trent Cole
Kyle Takavitz
Nagurski Award Trent Cole
Butkus Award Jamar Enzor
Davey O?Brien Award Gino Guidugli
Johnny Unitas Award Gino Guidugli
All-Conference USA Bearcats
University of Cincinnati seniors Andre Frazier, Trent Cole, Daven Holly and Kyle Takavitz were named to the All-Conference USA preseason football team, selected by the league's coaches. All were first team selections. Cole and Takavitz were first team All-C-USA in 2003 with Frazier and Holly earning second team plaudits.
Veteran Bearcats
The University of Cincinnati opened the 2004 season boasting 27 seniors. On the Bearcats? depth chart for the season opener vs. Ohio State, UC had 10 seniors on the offensive two-deep and 13 on defense. By comparison, in 2003 Cincinnati entered the season with 18 seniors, with six on the offensive depth chart and seven on the defensive list for the season opener.
Dantonio Defensive Gems
Cincinnati was ranked among the nation?s stingiest defenses in 2003 and there is ample reason to believe that success will carry over in 2004. The Bearcats return a veteran unit which includes seven returning starters. Also, new head coach Mark Dantonio has built a reputation for his accomplishments as an assistant on the defensive side of the ball.
? Ohio State had the nation?s second-ranked rushing defense in 2003, under Dantonio?s tutelage as defensive coordinator. OSU was also ranked 10th in total defense and 16th in scoring defense.
? In 2002, Ohio State was No. 2 in scoring defense and No. 3 in rushing defense en route to the national championship.
? In 2001, Ohio State led the Big Ten in passing defense and was No. 2 in scoring defense.
? While Dantonio served as secondary coach at Michigan State, the Spartans were No. 10 in passing efficiency defense in 1998 and No. 7 in 2000. In 1999, MSU was No. 12 nationally in total defense.