TicketsCINCINNATI – Senior wide receiver Cyrus Allen scored three first-half touchdowns and star quarterback Brendan Sorsby accounted for four total touchdowns to lead the No. 24-ranked Cincinnati football team to a 49-17 victory over Oklahoma State on Saturday at Boone Pickens Stadium.
"It was a great atmosphere with Homecoming, and I thought Oklahoma State came out and played hard," head coach Scott Satterfield said. "Their quarterback, making his second start of the season, played real well today with his scrambling and throwing accurately down field."
The Bearcats improved to 6-1 overall to become bowl eligible for the first time since 2022 and 15th time in 20 years. Cincinnati also remained undefeated, 4-0, in the Big 12 and tied with BYU (4-0) for first place in the league.
Despite bringing a 1-5 record and playing with interim head coach Doug Meacham, Oklahoma State played inspired football for its annual homecoming contest in front of 46,901 fans.
Still, Sorsby led a red-hot offense in the first half, as Cincinnati scored on all four of its drives before halftime, including two touchdown throws to Allen, an option pitch to the senior receiver and a scoring toss to senior tight end Joe Royer.
The Bearcats punted on their first two possessions of the third quarter, but Sorsby completed a 38-yard pass to senior receiver Jeff Caldwell on third-and-16 on the first play of the fourth quarter to set up his own 1-yard touchdown to make the score 35-17 with a little more than 13 minutes left.
"Our offense had the ball four times in the first half and scored on all of them," Satterfield said. "They really grabbed that momentum, particularly before halftime after being backed up at our own 5 or 6 yard line. We got caught into a lull in the third, and (OSU) got back in it, but the play of the fourth quarter was Brendan Sorsby hitting Caldwell on the big third-and-16. I'm real proud of our guys, and we're ready to get home to Nippert Stadium next week."
Oklahoma State drove down to the Cincinnati 14-yard line, but cornerback Matthew McDoom had a 100-yard pick-six – the longest interception in school history and first pick of the season for the Bearcats – to seal the game.
Two plays after that, Oklahoma State quarterback Sam Jackson V fumbled, and it was recovered by Logan Wilson. Manny Covey then rushed nine yards for his first touchdown of the season two plays later for a 49-17 lead with 4:39 left.
First Quarter
Senior running back Evan Pryor had a 32-yard rush on Cincinnati’s first offensive play to kick-off a lightning-quick, five-play, 79-yard opening drive for the Bearcats after the UC defense forced a 3-and-out.
Cincinnati totaled 53 rushing yards on its first four plays before Sorsby zipped a 26-yard touchdown to Allen on his first pass of the night to put the Bearcats in front, 7-0, at the 11:54 mark in the first quarter.
Helped by a pass interference call on Cincinnati, Oklahoma State had a 14-play, 61-yard, clock-churning drive that ended in a 33-yard field goal by Logan Ward that made the score 7-3 with 4:10 left in the first frame.
Second Quarter
Sorsby flipped the ball to Allen on an option play and the wide receiver dashed 14 yards to paydirt for his first career rushing touchdown on the first play of the second quarter to cap a nine-play, 71-yard touchdown drive.
Fields Jr. provided a spark for the Cowboys with a 41-yard rush to open the home team’s next possession. Jackson V capped the drive with a six-yard touchdown run on third-and-goal to bring the Cowboys within four, 14-10, at the 11:12 mark in the second quarter.
On Cincinnati’s third possession, Sorsby zipped a 27-yard touchdown to Royer to extend the Bearcats lead to 21-10 with 8:49 left in the first half.
The Cowboys stayed in the game with explosive plays with Jackson finding Shamar Rigby for a 48-yard completion to move Oklahoma State into Cincinnati territory midway through the second quarter.
A fourth-and-1 red zone stop by redshirt junior safety Antwan Peek Jr. gave the Bearcats the ball back with 2:28 left in the second quarter and Sorsby spearheaded a 94-yard drive, finding Allen for his third score of the half, a 12-yard reception 13 seconds before the break.
The Bearcats, who had 305 total yards on 32 first-half plays, took a 28-10 lead into halftime.
Third Quarter
Cincinnati’s offense finally slowed down in the third quarter as UC punted on its first two possessions after the break.
Oklahoma State showed life on its first drive of the second half with Jackson V finding tight end Quinton Stewart for a 30-yard completion and Rodney Fields Jr. scoring a 20-yard touchdown to make the score 28-17 at 10:39 in the third quarter.
Sorsby took just his second sack of the season on the final play of the third quarter to set up a third-and-16 play.
Fourth Quarter
On the first play of the third quarter, Sorsby zipped a 38-yard first down catch to Caldwell, who made a ridiculous reception in traffic, and then drew a pass interference call in the end zone two plays later.
Royer nearly scored a touchdown on first-and goal before Sorsby evaded and broke several tackles for a 1-yard touchdown to cap a 95-yard drive and put the Bearcats comfortably in front, 35-17, with 13:21 left in the game.
Oklahoma State answered with a 61-yard drive, but Jackson tossed an end-zone interception to McDoom for a 100-yard pick six – the first interception of the season and longest pick-six in school history.
Jackson V fumbled on Oklahoma State’s next play and Covey scored on a nine-yard rush to make the score 49-17 with 4:39 left.
UP NEXT
Cincinnati returns home for a homecoming game at Historic Nippert Stadium against Baylor at 4 p.m. next Saturday. The game will be televised on ESPN2 or ESPNU.