The Cincinnati Bearcats were named among the most underrated preseason college football teams since 2014 according to the AP Poll Voters. Of this top 25 list, the Cincinnati Bearcats come in at No. 9 behind Tulane, TCU, Ole Miss, Boise State, Iowa, Northwestern, Indiana, and BYU. It is unclear what parameters went into this list-making, but seeing the Bearcats near the top of any list is a good sight.
Likely, this list probably comes from teams that had a great season(s) but weren't ranked near the top or ranked at all in the preseason AP Poll. When the Cincinnati Bearcats made the Peach Bowl against the Georgia Bulldogs in 2019, their preseason rank was No. 20, and their end-of-season rank was No. 8. When they made the College Football Playoff in 2021, playing in the Cotton Bowl against the Alabama Crimson Tide, their preseason rank was No. 8, and their end-of-season rank was No. 4. Cincinnati was unranked in 2018 before finishing the season with a No. 24 rank and again in 2019 they were unranked before finishing the season with a No. 21 ranking.
The Bearcats have shown that in past years they have been underrated going into the season, but all that "overachieved" success was led by Luke Fickell. Cincinnati hasn't finished a season ranked in the AP Top 25 since that 2021 college football playoff berth. They went 9-4 the next season, receiving votes in the final AP Poll, but ultimately fell from their No. 23 rank to start the season.
NEW: AP Poll Voters’ Most Underrated Preseason College Football Teams since 2014👀
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