Cincinnati Football: Defensive standouts from the Bearcats road win over rival Pittsburgh

A handful of defensive players made a significant impact in the Cincinnati Bearcats 27-21 win against the Pittsburgh Panthers on Saturday evening!

Bearcats defensive linemen Jowon Briggs, Dontay Corleone and Eric Phillips combined for eight tackles, four tackles for loss and three sacks in the win.

Jack Dingle came up clutch with a team-best seven tackles, highlighted by a pivotal sack to stop a potential game-winning drive in the final minutes.

Other contributors included Bryon Threats tying a team-high with seven tackles, and Deshawn Pace racking up five tackles and one pass deflection.

Cincinnati Football: Defensive standouts from the Bearcats road win over rival Pittsburgh

Despite struggling to find an offensive rhythm in the second half, the Bearcats found a way to fend off Pittsburgh’s comeback attempt.

Heading into the fourth quarter with a double digit advantage, it appeared Cincinnati would coast to a win before Pittsburgh cut into the deficit.

Scott Satterfield’s team made just enough plays down the stretch to remain in front and eventually secure a win in the River City Rivalry.

The Bearcats offense wasn’t nearly as effective in the fourth quarter but the defense tightened up in the final minutes to keep Pittsburgh at bay.

Cincinnati Football: Bearcats survive comeback to secure 27-21 win over rival Pittsburgh

Briggs explained the defensive game plan and reacted to the Bearcats performance in the postgame press conference per Cincinnati Athletics.

"“I think the main thing about going into someone else’s stadium is making sure that you really put your foot down and show that you’re here for a fight. We knew they were going to try to run the ball so once we established that we were pretty stout against the run in the first and second quarter, they started trying to air that ball out and we were getting them behind the chains. We had a great week of preparation so we knew exactly what we were going to run, when we were going to run it and how we were going to do it. That’s just a testament to how the scout team guys help us out and how we prepared throughout the week.”"