TicketsCINCINNATI - The No. 15 University of Cincinnati football team returns to Nippert Stadium on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET, closing out a three-game homestand in their AAC opener against USF. The game will air on ESPN+ and 700 WLW AM. The Bearcats are 2-0 on the young season with wins over Austin Peay and then No. 22 Army West Point.
Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, no fans will be allowed in the stadium on gameday except for immediate family members of players and coaches from Cincinnati and USF. Limited numbers of UC's spirit groups from band, cheer, dance and the Bearcat mascot will be socially distanced in the stands but not performing on field.
Watch the game trailer in the window above or watch on YouTube.
Bearcats fans can find helpful links about how to tune into the game.
15 CINCINNATI BEARCATS
Head Coach Luke Fickell
Record at Cincinnati 28-13 (Fourth Year)
Overall Record 34-20 (Fifth Year)
USF BULLS
Head Coach Jeff Scott
Record at School 1-1 (First Year)
Overall Record Same
GAME INFORMATION
Facility Nippert Stadium
Capacity 40,000
TV ESPN+
Radio 700 WLW AM / Sirius 202 / XM 202 / Internet 965
Online TuneIn.com
Series Record Cincinnati leads 10-7
At Cincinnati UC leads 6-2
Last Meeting Nov. 16, 2017 - UC W, 20-17
ON THE AIR
TV: ESPN +
• Play-by-Play: David Saltzman
• Analyst: Keith Moreland
• Online: WatchESPN.com Mobile App: ESPN
WHAT IS ESPN+?
The game will be broadcast to a national audience on the ESPN+ platform. Access the game on any streaming device with the ESPN app and sign up for an ESPN+ subscription ($5.99 per month/$49.99 per year).
View an ESPN+ FAQ
RADIO: BEARCATS SPORTS NETWORK
• Play-by-Play: Dan Hoard
• Analyst: Jim Kelly Jr.
• Sideline Reporter: Tony Pike
• Host/Engineer: Mo Egger
• Local: 700 WLW AM
• Satellite: Sirius 202 / XM 202 / Internet 965
• Online: Tunein.com / iHeartMedia App
• Mobile App: TuneIn (search Cincinnati Bearcats)
LIVE STATS: BearcatStats.com
THE SERIES
Saturday marks the 18th meeting between UC and USF in a series which dates to 2003. Cincinnati leads the all-time series 10-7, including a 6-2 edge in Nippert Stadium. The Bearcats snapped a three-game slide in Raymond James Stadium a year ago when Sam Crosa hit a 37-yard field goal as time expired.
THE COACHES
Luke Fickell, the 2018 American Athletic Conference Coach of the Year, is in his fourth season at UC. He has led UC to back-to-back 11-win seasons, the 2019 AAC East Division Championship along with consecutive bowl-game wins in the 2018 Military Bowl and 2019 TicketSmarter Birmingham Bowl. A veteran of 20 years in the FBS ranks, Fickell has been a part of two national championship squads, nine conference title-winning teams (seven as a coach, two as a player at Ohio State) with 16 postseason games and 13 NFL Draft selections under his belt
Jeff Scott is 1-1 in his first year as USF's head coach. The Florida native took the job in Dec. 19 after 12 seasons at Clemson, the last five as co-offensive coordinator. He helped lead the Tigers to a five ACC championships, four CFP Championship game appearances (2015, 2016, 2018 & 2019) and two national titles.
STREAKS, STORYLINES, SIDEBARS ...
- UC plays its 133rd football season in 2020. The Bearcats program dates to 1885 and is one of the 10 oldest in the NCAA FBS. UC has won a league title five times in the last 13 years and has played 11 bowl games in the past 14 years.
- Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, UC lost games at Nebraska and vs. Miami (OH) and Western Michigan. The APSU game was moved from Sept. 3 to Sept. 19 and the Bearcats played Army West Point on Saturday, Sept. 26 in Nippert Stadium.
- No fans will be allowed in the stadium, except for immediate family members of players and coaches.
- UC has won five-straight American Athletic Conference FB Team Academic Excellence Awards from 2015-20.
- During the 2019-20 calendar year, UC was the only school in the NCAA FBS to play for a conference title in MBB (winter 2019), lacrosse (spring 2019), baseball (spring 2019), volleyball (fall 2019), football (fall 2019) and WBB (winter 2020).
- Fifteen states and four countries are represented on UC's 2020 roster, which features nearly 62 percent (77/125) Ohio natives, including 31 from Cincinnati. Eighty-three of UC's 125 players (66.4 percent) are sophomores or below.
- UC is 24-5 since 2018, ranking among the Top-10 teams in CFB in winning percentage during that span (.821).
- Cincinnati is No. 15 in this week's Associated Press and USA Today Coaches polls.
- UC comes off a 24-10 win over then No. 22 Army which saw the UC defense hold Army to a season-low 182 yards on the ground. The Black Knights entered the game with the NCAA FBS' top rushing offense, averaging 389.5 yards per game.
- UC has won 15-straight games in Nippert Stadium, the sixth-longest active streak in the NCAA FBS. Clemson (23) leads the way, followed by UCF (21), Notre Dame (20), Ohio State (20), UAB (19) and Cincinnati (15).
- QB Desmond Ridder became the eighth signal caller in school history to cross the 5,000-career passing yards plateau. He has thrown for 5,063 yards in his career thus far and sits seventh on the all-time passing chart.
- DE Ethan Tucky blocked an Army punt in the second quarter, his first of the season and fifth of his career.