Cincinnati Football: Week 11 preview, odds, predictions against East Carolina

Ethan Tucky of the Cincinnati Bearcats sacks Holton Ahlers of the East Carolina Pirates at Nippert Stadium. Getty Images.
Ethan Tucky of the Cincinnati Bearcats sacks Holton Ahlers of the East Carolina Pirates at Nippert Stadium. Getty Images.

In addition to potentially staying in the AAC title race, Cincinnati will look to extend the historic home win streak against East Carolina. Check out our Week 11 preview with odds, predictions and pregame quotes prior to kick off!

Cincinnati is coming off a bounce back win over Navy, while East Carolina hasn’t played since beating BYU in late October. Both teams are have experienced defenses that allow less than 24 points per game.

East Carolina’s fifth-year quarterback Holton Ahlers recently became the AAC’s all-time leader in passing yards and touchdowns this season. Isaiah Winstead is his top target with 871 receiving yards.

It’s going to be key to contain East Carolina’s offense but the Bearcats have to be able to score with more consistency. Despite averaging 33.2 points a game, Cincinnati hasn’t scored 30+ points in four games.

Cincinnati Football: Week 11 preview, odds, predictions against East Carolina

  • Date: Friday, November 11 at 8:00 PM
  • Location: Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati
  • TV Broadcast: ESPN2 and fuboTV
  • Series History: Bearcats trail 13-12

According to WynnBET, the Bearcats are favored by five points over East Carolina with kick off Friday at Nippert Stadium. The over/under is set at 52.5 total points as Cincinnati aims for a fifth straight win over the conference opponent.

Even though the Bearcats have won nine of the last 10 games against East Carolina, this game should be much more competitive. I’m picking Cincinnati to protect home field and earn a 27-23 win on Friday.

In a recent press conference, Luke Fickell discussed the Friday night matchup per Cincinnati Athletics.

"“It’s just the routine of things and what you’re used to. Even the week before when you have the Sunday, it’s a nice time to let your guys enjoy a victory and get a rhythm. I know for me Monday is a great day because it’s a whole day to game plan and we get to take our time and do it the way we want to. Then all of a sudden you get a change in your routine and Sunday is Monday and Monday is Tuesday. Everything just becomes accelerated because you don’t want to short change anything so you just have to have a really good plan. We’ve been fortunate enough to have a few of these Friday night games that we’ve had a plan in place that gives us a chance and we’re not scrambling around. We’ve been pretty consistent with how we’ve prepared. It takes a lot of maturity from the players and coaches as well.”"