TicketsFootball seasons, by their definition, are temporary. This magical season had an ending long before it even had a beginning. Yet so much of what has happened in the last four months is irreversible.
We'll always get to claim future NFL stars like Sauce Gardner, Desmond Ridder, and Myjai Sanders. Ridder will always be––holy cow––unbeaten at Nippert Stadium. In his collegiate career, Gardner will always be unblemished—zero touchdowns allowed.
We'll always be the ones that broke Notre Dame's home win streak. We'll always be the conference champions. We'll always be home to the best College GameDay show of 2021.
This isn't basketball, where every team in America starts with a shot at a title. The Bearcats did enough in 13 games to skip straight to the final four, the first team of their stature to ever do so. And we'll always be the first.
But look closer, and you can see other irreversible changes. Think about how many young kids in Cincinnati just saw their local team make history. A permanent expansion of the fan base just occurred. Those who were around when UC wasn't in a position to overflow Nippert Stadium half a dozen times in a single autumn will be the first to tell you this kind of season makes fans for life, much like great Bearcats basketball teams of the past have.
So much about this program's recent history has been cyclical. The Bearcats lost to UCF in 2018 but came back and got them in 2019. They lost a conference championship game in 2019 but came back and got one in 2020. They missed a marquee road win at Ohio State but made up for it by toppling the Irish in October. They couldn't crack the CFP in 2020 but made history in 2021. You haven't seen the last of the Bearcats in the College Football Playoff.
This weekend's national title game features a matchup of the only two teams to beat these Bearcats in the last 758 days. Think about where we were the day Fickell was hired and consider that, five years later, the new bar to clear is an appearance in that game.
Losses will always hurt, but much like this season, that's temporary. It's success that leaves a scar. What this team has accomplished since September 4th will leave a permanent mark on this program, this city, and its people, and all of us were there to bear witness.
The 2021 Bearcats will reverberate long into the future, and that's the kind of magic that can't be undone.
We'll always get to claim future NFL stars like Sauce Gardner, Desmond Ridder, and Myjai Sanders. Ridder will always be––holy cow––unbeaten at Nippert Stadium. In his collegiate career, Gardner will always be unblemished—zero touchdowns allowed.
We'll always be the ones that broke Notre Dame's home win streak. We'll always be the conference champions. We'll always be home to the best College GameDay show of 2021.
The best fans in the world. #Bearcats | @CollegeGameDay pic.twitter.com/udUr2oUj3V
— University of Cincinnati (@uofcincy) November 6, 2021
This isn't basketball, where every team in America starts with a shot at a title. The Bearcats did enough in 13 games to skip straight to the final four, the first team of their stature to ever do so. And we'll always be the first.
But look closer, and you can see other irreversible changes. Think about how many young kids in Cincinnati just saw their local team make history. A permanent expansion of the fan base just occurred. Those who were around when UC wasn't in a position to overflow Nippert Stadium half a dozen times in a single autumn will be the first to tell you this kind of season makes fans for life, much like great Bearcats basketball teams of the past have.
Game 1️⃣4️⃣: The Playoff
— Cincinnati Football (@GoBearcatsFB) December 31, 2021
Narrated by Jason Kelce
Cincinnati vs. Alabama@CottonBowlGame #Bearcats | #LetItFly pic.twitter.com/uABATIhzZH
So much about this program's recent history has been cyclical. The Bearcats lost to UCF in 2018 but came back and got them in 2019. They lost a conference championship game in 2019 but came back and got one in 2020. They missed a marquee road win at Ohio State but made up for it by toppling the Irish in October. They couldn't crack the CFP in 2020 but made history in 2021. You haven't seen the last of the Bearcats in the College Football Playoff.
This weekend's national title game features a matchup of the only two teams to beat these Bearcats in the last 758 days. Think about where we were the day Fickell was hired and consider that, five years later, the new bar to clear is an appearance in that game.
Losses will always hurt, but much like this season, that's temporary. It's success that leaves a scar. What this team has accomplished since September 4th will leave a permanent mark on this program, this city, and its people, and all of us were there to bear witness.
The 2021 Bearcats will reverberate long into the future, and that's the kind of magic that can't be undone.
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