Cincinnati Football: Gantz, Bearcats Beat East Carolina Again On Last Second Field Goal 19-16

The Cincinnati Bearcats, behind the leg of sophomore kicker Andrew Gantz, beat the East Carolina Pirates on a last second field goal for the second straight season.

For an uncomfortably long while it certainly didn’t seem like UC would play well enough to even put themselves in a position to attempt a game winning field goal. The Bearcats played so sloppy in the first quarter defensively that it was rather miraculous they held East Carolina to 16 points at all. The Pirates’ first two drives ended in a field goal and a touchdown that by the 6:55 mark in the first quarter it appeared as if ECU was going to run away with it.

But like they did against Tulsa two weeks ago, Cincinnati’s defense rose up and played far better throughout the rest of the game, allowing just 233 yards and six points after those drives. It was an encouraging sign from a unit that has youth dotting the field in several critical positions.

Still concerning, though, is the offense’s inability to turn drives into points. UC won today thanks to a methodical field goal drive to close out the game but the Bearcats only scored 19 points off of their 427 total yards. That’s 18 points below Cincinnati’s season average and a touchdown less than the Pirates allow. Again, costly turnovers like the interception in the end zone killed UC’s chances at converting on otherwise successful possessions.

At this point in the season, 12 games in, it’s not like Cincinnati’s going to make wholesale changes to fix that issue so we’re probably crying over spilled milk mentioning it now. The Bearcats are 7-5 and bowl-bound with a destination made known in as early as few days. We should probably simply enjoy UC’s position and hope for an intriguing opponent, like the Auburn Tigers, to pop up in their next game. Taking down a recent National Champion would certainly cure the ills from a disappointing season, at least a little bit.