Cincinnati Hosts No. 8 Texas Tech for Homecoming Tilt on Saturday

University of Cincinnati celebrating its 100th Homecoming this weekend

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Cincinnati Hosts No. 8 Texas Tech for Homecoming Tilt on SaturdayCincinnati Hosts No. 8 Texas Tech for Homecoming Tilt on Saturday

CINCINNATI – With the University of Cincinnati celebrating its 100th Homecoming this weekend, the Bearcats will welcome No. 8 Texas Tech to Nippert Stadium on Saturday.

Action between the Bearcats and Red Raiders will begin at noon and the game will be televised on FS1.

Cincinnati owns an all-time record of 63-32-4 on Homecoming and is 5-1 in the last six such contests. Since the 2000 season, UC is 21-5 in Homecoming games.

Cincinnati and TTU have played just twice before, with the last meeting coming in 2024. That year, the Red Raiders outdueled the Bearcats in a 44-41 shootout.

UC is coming off a 45-42 loss at West Virginia over the weekend. A back-and-forth game, Cincinnati and WVU traded scores all day until a field goal as time expired lifted the Mountaineers to victory. Entering the game, West Virginia was the Big 12’s top rushing attack, but the Bearcats were able to hold them to 134 yards on the ground. Linebacker Jonathan Thompson recorded a career-best 15 tackles in the game and now ranks fourth in the conference with 54 stops.

Quarterback JC French also set a career high, throwing for 389 yards in Morgantown. He completed 22-of-30 passes and still has not thrown an interception this season. French’s 153 pass attempts this year with a pick are fourth-most behind Boise State’s Maddux Madsen (166), Indiana’s Josh Hoover (169), and South Florida’s Michael Van Buren Jr. (179). His 70.6% completion percentage is higher than all four of those quarterbacks.

Saturday’s game against Texas Tech kicks off a stretch of games for Cincinnati that includes three straight against ranked opponents: No. 8 TTU, No. 10 Utah (Oct. 31), and No. 14 Houston (Nov. 7). In fact, entering play this weekend UC owns the toughest schedule in the country, with its remaining opponents boasting a 29-8 record.

One of just six remaining unbeaten teams in the nation, Texas Tech owns the fifth-ranked rushing defense in the country (82.0) and the 11th-ranked rushing offense (231.2). Running back J’Koby Williams (538 rushing yards) is sixth in the Big 12 in rushing.

Following this Saturday’s game vs. Texas Tech, Cincinnati will host No. 10 Utah on Halloween. Kickoff for that game is set for 3:45 p.m. on either ESPN or ESPN2.

BROADCAST INFORMATION

The game will be broadcast on FS1 with Jack Kizer (play-by-play) and Mark Helfrich (analyst) on the call. The game will be broadcast on radio via 700 WLW and SiriusXM Channel 177 or 237 with Dan Hoard (pxp) and Tony Pike (analyst) on the call.

DOWN THE DRIVE: C-PAW FIRST & 10

  1. Cincinnati returns to Nippert Stadium to battle Texas Tech on its 100th Homecoming. On Friday night, UC football legends Jason Kelce and Connor Barwin will be inducted into the James P. Kelly UC Athletics Hall of Fame.
  2. The Bearcats posted 622 yards of total offense last week at West Virginia, their highest output against an FBS opponent since facing Kansas in September of last season.
  3. Cincinnati featured a 389-yard passing performance by JC French, a 100-yard rushing game by Cole Tabb (118), and a 100-yard receiving game by Malachi Henry (128). It marks the first time the Bearcats featured a trio with a 375-yard passer, a 100-yard rusher, and a 100-yard receiver in the same game since Nov. 14, 2015, vs. Tulsa (Gunner Kiel, 386 passing; Mike Boone, 137 rushing; Mekale McKay, 101 receiving).
  4. Cincinnati placed three receivers over the 75-yard threshold against West Virginia on Oct. 17, 2026—JV Gibson, Malachi Henry, and Isaiah Johnson. The performance stands as the Bearcats’ first game with three 75-yard receivers since 2016 against Tulsa (Thomas Geddis, Devin Gray, Jerron Rollins).
  5. Cole Tabb has recorded three games this season with at least three total touchdowns, the most 3+ touchdown games in Cincinnati single-season program history (since 1995). Tabb already ranks tied for No. 3 (since 1995) for career 3+ touchdown games with three, trailing only McCleskey and Michael Warren (4 each) and tied with Ray Jackson and Desmond Ridder.
  6. Tabb is one of only three players in the Big 12 to reach double-digit touchdowns this season, joining West Virginia’s Michael Hawkins Jr. (14) and Utah’s Wayshawn Parker (11).
  7. Quarterback JC French delivered a masterclass performance at West Virginia, completing 22 of 30 passes (73.3%) for 389 yards, three touchdowns, and zero interceptions. French is one of only two quarterbacks in the Big 12 this season against FBS competition to record a game with 375+ passing yards, a 70%+ completion percentage, 3+ passing TDs, and zero interceptions (joining West Virginia’s Michael Hawkins Jr. from the same game).
  8. Cincinnati ranks 11th in the NCAA averaging 231.2 rushing yards per game, third-most in the Big 12. Cincinnati has rushed for over 225 yards in four of its six games. Only West Virginia and service academies Army and Navy have reached the 225-yard mark more times this season.
  9. Texas Tech has accumulated a combined 18-2 record since the start of the 2025 season, 17 of those wins are by double- digits. The Red Raiders have opened 6-0 for the second consecutive year, joining only BYU and Indiana as the only three FBS teams in the nation to begin both the 2025 and 2026 seasons with 6-0 records. They broke a school record with their eighth consecutive regular-season conference victory last week, since loss last year at Arizona State.
  10. The Bearcats’ next three opponents (No. 8 Texas Tech, No. 10 Utah, and No. 14 Houston) are all currently ranked in the top 15 of the AP Poll. Cincinnati’s remaining six future opponents feature a combined record of 29-8 (.784 winning percentage), ranking as the highest remaining opponent winning percentage in college football and highlighting a daunting back-half slate.

UC ATHLETICS HALL OF FAME 2026 CLASS FEATURES TWO FOOTBALL LEGENDS

  • Former Cincinnati standouts Jason Kelce and Connor Barwin are part of the James P. Kelly UC Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2026, which will be inducted on Friday, Oct. 23 inside Fifth Third Arena.
  • Kelce transitioned from a walk-on linebacker to a three-year starting offensive lineman under three head coaches, while Barwin starred as a tight end before transitioning to defensive end, leading the BIG EAST with 11.0 sacks in 2008. 

CINCINNATI’S WINS VS. RANKED OPPONENTS

  • Cincinnati’s most recent victory over a ranked opponent came last season on October 4, 2025, when the Bearcats built an early 31-7 lead and held on for a 38-30 home win over No. 14 Iowa State at Nippert Stadium.
  • The Bearcats’ last win against a top-10 ranked team came on October 2, 2021, when No. 7 Cincinnati earned a signature 24-13 road victory over No. 9 Notre Dame at Notre Dame Stadium—a key win that propelled the program toward its historic College Football Playoff berth.
  • The last time Cincinnati defeated a top-10 opponent at home inside Nippert Stadium was on November 18, 2006, when the Bearcats throttled No. 7 Rutgers, 30-11, standing as the highest-ranked opponent ever defeated by Cincinnati at home.
  • Prior to that, Cincinnati’s previous top-10 home win was a 17-12 upset of No. 9 Wisconsin on September 18, 1999.

RUNNING UP THE TABB

  • Cole Tabb has recorded three games this season with at least three total touchdowns, the most 3+ touchdown games in Cincinnati single-season program history (since 1995). Tabb already ranks tied for No. 3 (since 1995) for career 3+ touchdown games with three, trailing only DeMarco McCleskey and Michael Warren II (4 each) while tied with Ray Jackson and Desmond Ridder.
  • Tabb (10 total touchdowns) is one of only three players in the Big 12 to reach double-digit touchdowns this season, joining West Virginia’s Michael Hawkins Jr. (14) and Utah’s Wayshawn Parker (11).
  • Tabb shares the national lead with Florida’s Jadan Baugh and Utah’s Wayshawn Parker as the only three players in college football to record three 3+ touchdown performances this season.
  • Tabb becomes the latest Cincinnati player to hit double-digit touchdowns in a single season, marking back-to-back seasons with a Bearcat scoring 10+ times, following Cyrus Allen (13 TDs in 2025), Jerome Ford (20 TDs in 2021), Desmond Ridder (12 TDs in 2020), and Michael Warren II (16 TDs in 2019 and 20 in 2018).

BALANCED OFFENSE

  • Cincinnati has scored 30+ points in five of its first six games, joining five other Big 12 schools in doing so.
  • Cincinnati has rushed for over 225 yards in four of six games. Only West Virginia has done so more in the Big 12.
  • The Bearcats are one of eight schools with two performances of 600+ yards of total offense in a game this season.
  • Cincinnati is the only school in the country with two performances of 600+ yards of total offense and 200+ rushing yards without a turnover.

BIG PLAY MALACHI

  • Wide receiver Malachi Henry leads the FBS in yards per reception among players with 8+ catches, averaging 33.3 yards per catch (8 receptions, 266 yards). Henry recorded 128 receiving yards on two catches against West Virginia last week.
  • The only players in Big 12 history with more receiving yards on two or fewer catches in a game are former Bearcat Cyrus Allen (133 yards on Nov. 1, 2025) and Oklahoma’s Antwone Savage (138 yards on Sept. 29, 2001).