In addition to the Bearcats celebrating Homecoming on Saturday afternoon, Luke Fickell has a chance to tie Rick Minter with the most victories in program history. It could be a historic day as Cincinnati looks to take down South Florida at Nippert Stadium.
Following the win over Miami in September, Fickell tied Sid Gillman for second most in school history and has an opportunity to tie Minter with 53 career wins this week. Fickell is likely going to become the winningest coach in school history in late October.
Minter held the record for nearly two decades but it took him 10 years to reach the 50-win mark, while Fickell found a way to accomplish even more in less than six seasons. Since hiring him in 2016, the team is 52-16 with a pair of conference championships.
In addition to Homecoming this week, @CoachFick has a chance to tie Rick Minter with the most wins in program history. It should be an exciting day as the #Bearcats are expected to blow past a struggling South Florida team.https://t.co/vWmzdK0Xgwpic.twitter.com/rgXrzbGji8
— Cincy on the Prowl (@CincyOnTheProwl) October 7, 2022
Cincinnati Football: Luke Fickell looks to tie most wins in Bearcats history
After struggling in his first season, Fickell turned the program into a conference powerhouse and helped bring it back to national relevance. Cincinnati has been led by plenty of great head coaches but no one has pushed the program to new heights like Fickell.
During the last five years, the Bearcats are 48-8 with a historic College Football Playoff berth and a record-setting 29-game home win streak. Fickell recently discussed the possibility of tying Minter against South Florida on Saturday via Cincinnati Athletics.
"“It has no bearing on what we do. It’s not something that I think a whole lot about. Just another opportunity for us to move forward. I think it’s the only way to create sustained success. Just because when you don’t have continuity and stability, it’s hard for young guys to grow. That’s where I think we’ve done a really good job. Not because of me but because we’ve been able to keep the key pieces in place from a strength program to what we’ve done offensively and defensively. We’ve grown but we haven’t changed and that stability has given our kids a much greater opportunity to grow and play together.“"