Cincinnati Football: Looking ahead to the Bearcats non-conference schedule

After becoming the first Group of Five program to reach the College Football Playoff, the Bearcats are hoping to keep the momentum going at the beginning of next season. Luke Fickell’s team will travel to Arkansas for a highly-anticipated matchup in September before a trio of games in Cincinnati against Kennesaw State, Miami (Ohio) and Indiana.

Here is a quick breakdown of the Bearcats upcoming non-conference schedule.

Week 1 at Arkansas

September 3 (Razorback Stadium)

Cincinnati will start the regular season with a difficult trip to take on the Razorbacks. Arkansas has a talented team coming back and will lean on veteran quarterback KJ Jefferson, Oklahoma transfer wide receiver Jadon Haselwood and linebackers Bumper Pool and Drew Sanders. The Bearcats starting quarterback, whether it’s Evan Prater or Ben Bryant, is going to be faced with a major challenge in his starting debut on the road against ESPN’s preseason 20th ranked team.

Week 2 vs Kennesaw State

September 10 (Nippert Stadium)

The following week, Cincinnati will host Kennesaw State in the home opener at Nippert Stadium. Kennesaw State was one of the best FCS teams in the country last year, going 11-2 and winning 10 straight games before falling to East Tennessee State in the second round of the playoffs. Despite likely being a double digit favorite, the Bearcats shouldn’t take their opponent lightly and allow them to hang around. It will be the first ever matchup between the two programs.

Week 3 vs Miami (Ohio)

September 17 (Paul Brown Stadium)

The Bearcats won’t technically be playing on their home turf against Miami (Ohio) but the game will be held in Cincinnati at Paul Brown Stadium in mid September. With the exception of 2020, these two teams have played every season since 1945 and have a remarkable 111 previous meetings, the most versus any team in Cincinnati school history. Despite winning 15 straight matchups with Miami, the Bearcats are 54-53-4 against the home state rival.

Cincinnati beat Miami 49-14 in the 2021 season opener.

Week 4 vs Indiana

September 24 (Nippert Stadium

In the last week of September, the Bearcats will host Big Ten foe Indiana to wrap up the non-conference slate. Cincinnati went on the road and took down the Hoosiers 38-24 last year so Tom Allen’s team will be focused on getting revenge. Indiana no longer has quarterback Michael Penix Jr but Connor Bazelak transferred from Missouri and is expected to win the job over Jack Tuttle. Former Auburn running back Shaun Shivers is also a player to watch for the Hoosiers.

Following the matchup with Indiana, the Bearcats will start American Conference play away from home on October 1 against Tulsa. Seven days later, South Florida will come to town for homecoming on October 8 prior to the bye week. It’s possible that Cincinnati goes undefeated against non-conference opponents for a third consecutive season but Arkansas and Indiana should be competitive matchups.