2021
First G5 Playoff berth
Undefeated Cincinnati becomes the first non-power program to reach the College Football Playoff
Program prestige
Zeitgeist statureNational Program IIProgram outlook
Program outlook
Cincinnati went undefeated in 2021, became the first program outside the traditional power structure to reach the College Football Playoff, and then watched the reward — a Big 12 invitation — deliver a 5-7 missed bowl and a 7-6 Liberty Bowl loss to Navy. Breaking the ceiling is one thing. The room above it has been harder than advertised.
Since Jun 14: L 7-34 at Arizona; L 42-45 at West Virginia; W 37-24 vs Texas Tech; L 25-49 vs Utah. 5-3 this season.
Read the full essay — 3 more paragraphs
The 2021 Bearcats didn't sneak into the Playoff — they went 13-1, won the American, beat Notre Dame in South Bend on the road, and made the selection committee acknowledge a team like theirs could belong. Sauce Gardner was a shutdown corner who became a top-five NFL pick and All-Pro. Desmond Ridder was the quarterback. Luke Fickell was the coach. The program didn't just crack the door open for Group of Five programs; it kicked it in. Nippert Stadium — one of the oldest continuously used on-campus stadiums in the country, a tight urban bowl where the noise sits directly on the field — was the setting. That's the canon Cincinnati points to.
Scott Satterfield's Big 12 tenure has been a grind. A 5-7 year in 2024, then a 7-6 in 2025 capped by a 35-13 Liberty Bowl loss to Navy. New coordinators arrived for 2026 alongside a portal-reshaped roster. Satterfield enters year four with the question the fanbase has been quietly asking for two seasons: can the program that broke into the Playoff once get back there from inside a Power conference, against Power competition, every week? The internal fracture in Cincinnati is real and specific — one faction is still measuring against Fickell's 2021 standard; the other is giving Satterfield the time a Big 12 rebuild requires.
The 2026 season is the clearest referendum Satterfield has faced. New coordinators, a reshaped roster, and a Big 12 schedule that doesn't forgive bad weeks. The question isn't whether the 2021 season was legitimate — it was — but whether this program can compete in a league that has no off weeks the way the American once did.
On the field
Defense-and-edge football remains the Bearcat baseline — the identity Fickell's 2021 team built, physical and corner-rich, with Sauce Gardner as the archetype. Satterfield has tried to layer an offensive system over that defensive foundation, with mixed results in the Big 12. The program's credibility still flows through the back seven; when Cincinnati wins close games in the Big 12, it's because the defense holds. Nippert's tight urban bowl amplifies home-game noise in a way that benefits a physical, edge-driven team.
Cincinnati has won 49% of its games since 1893 — 61% at home, 35% on the road.
441-453-15 all-time · 114 seasons · 1893–2026
Home
286-176-9
Away
144-263-6
Neutral
11-14
5 g
1890s
10%
1900s
5 g
1910s
8 g
1920s
23%
1930s
32%
1940s
55%
1950s
43%
1960s
48%
1970s
35%
1980s
39%
1990s
62%
2000s
62%
2010s
62%
2020s
The CFP era
13 seasons inside the CFP era, no bids yet — the era the program is still trying to break into.
Trajectory · quality-score line · AP rank dotted · CFP bids marked · coach regimes ribboned
Program quality
AP rank (inverted)
CFP appearance
Swipe left for earlier seasons
Cincinnati’s 2014–2026 record is 97-62.
Scott Satterfield
Scott Satterfield has held the program for 4 seasons — the era is established.
Era Scott Satterfield · 2023–presentPrev: Kerry Coombs (interim) (2022)OC: Pete Thomas (co) / Nic Cardwell (co)Prev OC: Brad Glenn (2023–2025)DC: Nate Woody / Cortney Braswell (co)Prev DC: Tyson Veidt / Cortney Braswell (co) (2025)
4
years · era
Cincinnati and Louisville, meeting by meeting
Louisville leads the series 23-22-1 (since 1966); in the last 10 meetings, Cincinnati is 4-6
2022: Louisville won 24-7. After this game, Louisville led 23-22-1.
Last 25 meetings: ▲ Cincinnati won, ▼ Louisville won, by how much
Each step is one meeting: up when Cincinnati wins, down when Louisville wins, flat for a tie. Counts every game in our records since 1966. Tap the line for any season.
Cincinnati in History
- The Big 12 adds BYU, Cincinnati, Houston and UCFConference change · Sep 10, 2021
Moments in Cincinnati history
- Alabama 27, Cincinnati 6CFP Semifinal at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic · Dec 31, 2021
- Georgia 24, Cincinnati 21Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl · Jan 1, 2021
- Miami (OH) 31, Cincinnati 24Sep 16, 2023
What this program never forgets
Most weeks vanish. These didn’t.
2021
Beating Notre Dame in South Bend
A road win over the Irish that powered the Playoff case
2021
Cotton Bowl loss to Alabama
A 27-6 semifinal defeat ends the undefeated run
Heartbreak
Moment of the year · 2026
Won 37-24 vs Texas Tech
Week 8 of 2026. Beat a top-8 opponent on the field.
2022–2026
Cincinnati has sent 18 players to the NFL Draft since 2022 — one of them in the first round.
Strong. 1 first-round picks. Recruits with NFL ambitions notice.
18
picks · 1 in round 1
#4
Ahmad Gardner
Cornerback · 2022 · 
New York Jets · #4/321 final season
New York Jets · #4/321 final season
#51
Jake Golday
Linebacker · 2026 · 
Minnesota Vikings · #90/583 final season
Minnesota Vikings · #90/583 final season
#53
Alec Pierce
Wide Receiver · 2022 · 
Indianapolis Colts · #63/468 final season
Indianapolis Colts · #63/468 final season
#86 all-time · 3 first-round picksthe talent factory →
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Program facts
Program résumé
1CFP apps
Ladder finish
Season standing · 2026 · 5-3
Season standing · 2026 · 5-3Cincinnati is 5-3 — competitive, unranked, not yet bowl-eligible.
Competitive in FBS but not bowl-eligible — the close-loss tier.
FBS competitive
Sub-FBSBuildingBowlRankedContenderPlayoff
Conference
Big 12 standing · 2026
9th in the Big 12
Cincinnati is 9th of 16 in the Big 12 at 2-3. The path to the title is steep — the focus is on bowl access and rivalry wins.
| # | Program | Record |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Utah | 5-0 |
| 2 | BYU | 4-1 |
| 3 | Texas Tech | 4-1 |
| 4 | Arizona | 3-2 |
| 5 | Baylor | 3-2 |
| 6 | Houston | 3-2 |
| 7 | Oklahoma State | 3-2 |
| 8 | Arizona State | 2-3 |
| 9 | Cincinnati | 2-3 |
| 10 | Iowa State | 2-3 |
| 11 | TCU | 2-3 |
| 12 | UCF | 2-3 |
| 13 | West Virginia | 2-3 |
| 14 | Colorado | 1-4 |
| 15 | Kansas | 1-4 |
| 16 | Kansas State | 1-4 |
Coaching history
Coaching history
- Hired Scott Satterfield
- Hired Kerry Coombs (interim)
- Luke Fickell departs
- Kerry Coombs departs (interim)
- Hired Luke Fickell
- Tommy Tuberville departs
- Hired Tommy Tuberville
- Butch Jones departs
Coordinator lineage
Cincinnati’s offense and defense, by coordinator
FBS-relative efficiency percentile per season (2014–2026), same population as the Coordinator Mirror board. Dashed vertical lines mark a coordinator change.
Offense2014–2026
2014–2015 · Eddie Gran2016 · Zac Taylor2017–2021 · Mike Denbrock2022 · Gino Guidugli2023–2025 · Brad Glenn2026 · Pete Thomas (co) / Nic Cardwell (co)
Defense2014–2026
2014 · Robert Prunty (co) / Hank Hughes (co)2015 · Robert Prunty (co) / Steve Clinkscale (co)2016 · Robert Prunty2017–2020 · Marcus Freeman2021 · Mike Tressel2022 · Colin Hitschler (co) / Mike Tressel2023 · Bryan Brown / Nate Fuqua (co)2024 · Tyson Veidt / Nate Fuqua (co)2025 · Tyson Veidt / Cortney Braswell (co)2026 · Nate Woody / Cortney Braswell (co)
Elite (≥70th pct)AveragePoor (≤30th pct)
Gameday customs
Rituals
Three gameday rituals — the ones outsiders never quite catch.
2021 CFP Run
since 2021
more
Cincinnati became the first Group of 5 program to make the College Football Playoff in 2021 under Luke Fickell — 13-1, AAC champions, semifinal loss to Alabama. The 2021 run is the program's defining modern moment + the reason the Big 12 extended an invitation in 2023.
Nippert Stadium On-Campus
since 1924
more
Nippert Stadium sits in the middle of UC's urban campus — one of the most-densely-built college stadiums in CFB. The proximity to dorms + classrooms + parking creates a Saturday environment unique to urban campuses. Visitors cite Nippert as one of the most-unusual P5 stadium experiences.
Bearcat Mascot
since 1914
more
The bearcat (a small carnivorous mammal of Southeast Asia, scientifically related to the binturong) is one of CFB's most-unusual mascot names. Origin: a 1914 student rally cry referring to a player as 'fighting like a bearcat.' The name stuck before anyone confirmed what a bearcat actually was. Lucy the Bearcat (costumed) appears at games.
Cultural identity
2025 L
2022 L
2021 L
2020 L
2019 WReddit blowups
r/CFB moments
2.2k
[Postgame Thread] Cincinnati Defeats USF 45-28
1.5k
[Postgame Thread] Cincinnati Defeats ECU 27-25
1.3k
[Postgame Thread] Cincinnati Defeats ECU 35-13
1.3k
[Postgame Thread] Cincinnati Defeats SMU 48-14
1.2k
[Postgame Thread] UCF Defeats Cincinnati 25-21
All-time top community posts
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