TicketsBy Bill Koch
GoBEARCATS.com
CINCINNATI – Anyone who was expecting a blowout win for the University of Cincinnati over an Austin Peay team that had lost 27 straight games and 44 of its last 45 probably was disappointed.
UC coach Luke Fickell certainly wasn't.
In his first game as the Bearcats' head coach, Fickell watched his team struggle at times, but he also watched his players make the plays they had to make to emerge with a 26-14 victory over Austin Peay before 30,831 fans Thursday night at Nippert Stadium.
"The most important thing is getting that win," Fickell said. "It's been a while coming, for these guys and for myself, seven or eight months of grinding through a lot of different things and talking about the process and really emphasizing the journey that we've been on. To come out tonight and have some ups and downs but ultimately to get the win…I told them in the locker room it's not easy to win, I don't care what level or who you're playing."
The Bearcats (1-0) were far from dominant. In fact, they were outplayed statistically by the Governors, who play in the lower-level Football Championship Subdivision. Austin Peay outgained UC, 313 yards to 248 and rushed for 224 yards, not something that a former defensive coordinator like FIckell wanted to see from his defensive line. The Governors (0-1) also had a decided edge in time of possession, 37:41 to 22:19.
But when the game was on the line after Austin Peay had pulled within six points early in the fourth quarter, the Bearcats put together an impressive five-play, 42-yard drive that ended with Mike Boone's 3-yard touchdown run. Hayden Moore's pass attempt at a 2-point conversion was no good, but UC still had a 26-14 lead with 5:13 left.
The Governors used up all but 1:32 of the rest of the game by driving to the UC 3-yard line, where on fourth-and-one Joel Dublanko stopped Kente Williams for a 4-yard loss, sealing the win for the Bearcats.
"There's some really good things that we can build on," Fickell said, "but the biggest thing is our ability as a team to handle some adversity. We got the win and we learned a lot about ourselves tonight."
Perhaps the expectation of a lopsided win for the Bearcats was out of line considering that they had lost their final five games last year with a lot of the same players. And it was apparent early on that Austin Peay had improved over last year's 0-11 outfit and would likely not suffer through another winless season.
In fact, this was the first time Austin Peay had held a Football Bowl Subdivision team under 30 points since Sept. 17, 2011 against Memphis. Whether that's a good sign for the Governors or a bad one for the Bearcats remains to be seen.
There were some positives on offense for UC, though. Boone gained 100 yards on 19 carries in the first 100-yard rushing game for a UC player since Boone gained 137 against Tulsa on Nov. 14, 2015. After spending most of the last two years getting rotated in and out of the game with one or two other backs, Boone enjoyed being the featured back for a change.
"That's the first time I've had the opportunity to do that," Boone said. "It was great."
And Moore, who bested Ross Trail for the starting quarterback job, turned in an efficient, if unspectacular performance, completing 17 of 28 passes for 151 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. The Bearcats did not commit a turnover.
"I definitely had a slow start," Moore said. "I was missing early, but as we settled down, I was making some throws. We took care of the ball with no interceptions. Everybody took care of the ball. The three touchdowns were great routes by the receivers. We could have done a lot better, but the no interceptions and no turnovers was a good start."
Fickell said he was filled with a lot of emotions as he took the field. He had to remind himself that his job had changed. He wasn't in charge of just the defense anymore like he was at Ohio State. He was running the whole shebang now. He forced himself to control his emotions and make sure he was there for his players.
"We need one another," Fickell said.
It wasn't a great night for the UC defense. Fickell wasn't happy with the Governors' ability to move the ball on the ground or with the two personal fouls that helped to escort Austin Peay down the field to score one of its touchdowns. But the Bearcats did force two turnovers – one of which was an interception by defensive end Bryan Wright with one second left in the second quarter when the Governors went for a touchdown on fourth and goal at the UC 2-yard line.
The Bearcats scored first on a 16-yard pass from Moore to Thomas Geddis early in the second quarter. After Austin Peay tied the score on a 19-yard touchdown pass from JaVaughn Craig to Williams, UC scored again on Moore's 6-yard touchdown pass to Kahlil Lewis to take a 14-7 lead into halftime.
In the third quarter UC drove to the Austin Peay 8-yard line, but Andrew Gantz, who missed most of last season with an injury, missed a 24-yard field goal attempt. Gantz also missed an extra point after Moore's touchdown pass to tight end Tyler Cogswell with 3:29 left in the third.
So yes, it was anything but an overwhelming performance for Fickell's debut. In fact, there were times when it didn't seem out of the question that the Bearcats could lose. But that was OK with Fickell.
"My biggest fear was if we came out and we didn't have a challenge and we didn't find out a whole lot about the character of our team," Fickell said. "We got tested tonight and we learned lot."
The Bearcats will be tested even more next week when they travel to Michigan to face the 11th-ranked Wolverines.
Bill Koch covered UC athletics for 27 years – 15 at The Cincinnati Post and 12 at The Cincinnati Enquirer – before joining the staff of GoBearcats.com in January, 2015.