This afternoon the Bearcats took on the Alabama Crimson Tide in the Cotton Bowl here in Arlington, Texas, in what is the biggest game in program history. The Bearcats have already made history, as they became the first “Group of Five” team to make the College Football Playoff, but they were looking to do more here this afternoon, as they were looking to continue making history as they knew what was at sake. A term we have heard all week long was “the jobs not finished” and the Bearcats were looking to knock off the number one ranked Crimson Tide for an opportunity to bring a national title back to Clifton.
Bearcats senior quarterback Desmond Ridder is 44-5 during his career at Cincinnati and was looking to add to his legacy as a Bearcat, as the Louisville native was looking to dethrone the reigning national champs and lead the Bearcats to a National Championship that will take place next week in Indianapolis.
Will the Bearcats be able to continue to stamp their name in history, and slow down an elusive Alabama Crimson Tide offense, or will their defense hold tall and continue to show why they’re one of the best defenses in the country.
The Bearcats would win the coin toss as they would elect to defer to the second half, as they wanted to see what Bryce Young, and the Crimson Tide would do to start the game. The Crimson Tide came out with 10 straight rushes to start the game resulting in 8-yard touchdown pass from Young to junior wide receiver Slade Bolden to give the Crimson Tide a 7-0 lead early.
The Bearcats were looking to respond right back as they really were dicing up the Crimson Tide defense early, after a 19 yard catch from Michael Young Jr, followed by a 22 yard catch from Tyler Scott, the Crimson Tide were forced to call an early timeout as the Bearcats were driving with the ball at the Crimson Tide 9-yard line. The Crimson Tide defense stood tall as they held the Bearcats to a field goal, as Cole Smith knocked it through from 33 yards to put the Bearcats on the board.
The Bearcats knew they would have to contain the Crimson Tide offense as Brian Robinson, Jr., was seeing most of the workload early for the Crimson Tide, as Nick Saban was really utilizing the run game early, as Robinson tallied 10 carries for 74 yards in the first quarter where the Crimson Tide held a 7-3 lead over the Bearcats after a huge stop on defense in the red zone forces the Crimson Tide to settle for a field goal to start the half, taking a 10-3 lead over the Bearcats.
The Bearcats would go on to slow down the Crimson Tide offense as they were looking to get something going on offense, after a great first drive, which was their only drive of the first quarter, the Bearcats knew they had to keep the ball and find a way to get points on the board after a huge stop on defense.
The Bearcats defensed has forced back-to-back stops, after a 3 and out, followed by a 44-yard missed field goal from Crimson Tide kicker Will Reichard, but they were going to half to find some momentum on offense as the Alabama defense was causing a lot of problems for the Bearcats early, as they were held to three straights, 3 and outs by the Crimson Tide defense. The Bearcats got a huge break after a muffed punt by Jojo Earle backed the Crimson Tide back to their own 6-yard line.
The Bearcats had stops on defense, but the Crimson Tide run game, led by Brian Robinson, Jr., opened up Bryce Young and the passing game where he connected on a 44 yard strike to Ja’Core Brooks for a touchdown giving the Crimson Tide a 17-3 lead with 1:36 remaining in the half. The Bearcats would look to find some momentum and put some poitns on the board before the half as they are set to recieve the second half kickoff, but the Alabama defense stood tall as they took a 17-3 lead over the Bearcats into the break.
First half stats for the Bearcats on offense.
- Ridder- 8-17, 59 yards
- Jerome Ford- 5 carries, 23 yards,
- Michael Young, Jr.- 3 receptions, 27 yards
Bearcats staff on defense for the first half
- Beavers- 7 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 1 sack
- Gardner- 5 tackles, 1 for loss
- Sanders – 5 tackles, 3 QBH
