UC Struggles With Consistency, Leadership In 38-24 Loss To BYU

The Cincinnati Bearcats lost a frustrating roadie tonight to the BYU Cougars 38-24.

There were moments of greatness from this UC team that appeared to put the demons of Temple and Memphis behind them. It looked like they had finally turned the corner behind new starting quarterback Hayden Moore, a healthy Mike Boone, and a defense that finally found its aggressiveness and an ability to actually get the opposing defense off the field.

But then Moore, maybe it was around his sixth or seventh sack, broke down mentally as his offensive linemen literally did the same around him. The young quarterback, looking like a deer in the headlights, was under constant pressure in the second half so it’s no surprise that he threw for just 56 yards after halftime after having thrown for 164 in the previous frame.

Cincinnati’s running game bogged down as well and you can pretty much point to a stark lack of Mike Boone in the second half. The Bearcats’ sophomore back had seven carries in the first half for 37 yards (5.3 per). But he was only give two in the second half during a game that was reasonably close until the fourth quarter. Maybe his ankle injury flared up again but I can’t for the life of me understand why Boone, who averaged 5.9 yards per carry tonight, was given the same amount of carries as Tion Green (3.3) and just one more than Hosey Williams (3.6).

But, that’s why I don’t get paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to coach collegiate football.

Then there’s the secondary. Mercy, me. They couldn’t cover a drop of water with a blanket if given the opportunity tonight.

After holding BYU’s wide outs relatively in check for the first half, Tanner Mangum found open target after open target deep down field. At one point he hit Nick Kurtz for a 53 yard bomb that probably still would have been a touchdown if Mangum had knelt down, tied his shoe, brushed the grass stains off his toes, got up, then chucked it downfield since the receiver was so egregiously wide open. Maybe if Steve Clinkscale had blitzed a few more times to force errant passes from the Cougars’ quarterback the defensive backs wouldn’t have been so exposed but I guess Miami was just an outlier for him.

Then there’s the punt Tommy Tuberville called with 3:55 left in the game and the Bearcats down two touchdowns. Look, Cincinnati was backed up on its own 21 yard line. Situationally it didn’t make much sense to go for it since, after all, UC was staring at a 4th and nine having put up -7 yards in the fourth quarter already.

But shouldn’t the Bearcats at least have tried for it? What’s there to lose? It’s not like they have wiggle room in the Access Bowl race, they’re already way behind the eight ball. They needed wins like tonight to stay on pace for a solid postseason birth, whether it’s in a major New Year’s Day bowl or not.

Plus, think about the message it sends this team. Not only does it display a defeatist attitude, to thousands of fans and hundreds of potential recruits mind you, but it tells the team that even though they’re told to give 100% and play until the final whistle, their leader certainly won’t do the same. On a macro level it creates a rift between the players and coaches that born in disrespect in its purest form. These 18-22 year old kids look to Tuberville for guidance and support.

How can they be forced to scratch, claw, and bleed in the trenches if the general looking on from above hangs the white flag before the war is declared over?

That’s the most concerning take away from this evening. Sure the game was probably over at the 3:55 mark with UC trailing by two touchdowns but you never want to see someone, an expensive someone at that, who is being tasked at making this a consistent championship caliber team to just throw in the towel. It doesn’t speak well for him or this program nor instill confidence from us fans in either.

Ugh… on to UConn, I suppose. New jerseys, yaaaay…