TicketsPicked to repeat as American Athletic Conference Champions, Cincinnati is coming off a 9-1 campaign in 2020, winning the AAC title and playing in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, a New Year's Six game. USA TODAY had the Bearcats No. 10 in the preseason coaches poll last week.
View the complete AP PreseasonTop-25 online.
No. 8 Cincinnati of the American Athletic Conference is the first team from outside the Power Five leagues to be ranked in the preseason top 10 since Louisville started ninth in 2012. That was the Cardinals' final season as a member of the AAC before joining the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The defending AAC champion Bearcats have the best preseason ranking for a non-Power Five or BCS conference team since Boise State was No. 5 to begin 2011. The Broncos out of the Mountain West finished that season No. 8.
UC has won 31 games over the last three seasons, including back-to-back 11-win campaigns in 2018 and 2019 and three-consecutive bowl games. The Bearcats have a school-record 20-game winning streak at Nippert Stadium and have forced a turnover in 20-straight games, the longest active streak in the NCAA FBS.
The Bearcats return 16 starters from last season's squad, including Desmond Ridder, the 2020 AAC Player of the Year and Ahmad Gardner. a seven-time All-America selection. All-AAC selections Darrian Beavers, Marcus Brown, Coby Bryant, Myjai Sanders, Tre Tucker, Josh Whyle and Michael Young Jr. also return. The 2021 roster projects to have nearly 40 local players who grew up and played high-school football in the tri-state area.
Cincinnati opens the 2021 season on Saturday, Sept. 4, against Miami in the 125th Battle for the Victory Bell at 3:30 p.m. ET inside Nippert Stadium. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and fans are encouraged to sign up for the digital platform online.
Visit the football tickets page to reserve your season tickets now!
BUY TICKETS NOW • SUBSCRIBE TO ESPN+
ABOUT THE AP TOP-25 POLL
The Associated Press began its college football poll on Oct. 19, 1936, and it is now the longest-running poll of those that award national titles at the end of the season. The preseason poll was started in 1950. A panel of 62 sports writers and broadcasters from around the country votes on the poll weekly.
LET IT FLY
The University of Cincinnati football team's 2021 preseason will be featured in a six-part miniseries titled LET IT FLY, airing weekly at 7 p.m. ET on YouTube and GoBEARCATS.com, starting July 29 and running through September 2.
Learn more online.
FILL-IT-UP FRIDAYS
New season ticket holders who make their purchases on a Friday between 9 a.m. and noon ET will be entered in a drawing to win various Bearcats prizes. Fans should follow @GoBEARCATS on social media and tune in each Thursday this summer for weekly prize announcements.
FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
For all the latest information on Cincinnati football, please visit GoBEARCATS.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow Cincinnati football (@GoBearcatsFB) and Coach Fickell (@CoachFick) on Twitter. You can also find the Bearcats on Instagram and Facebook.