Three keys, prediction: No. 21 Cincinnati looks to spoil SMU's homecoming
The University of Cincinnati football team will travel to Dallas to face Southern Methodist University on Saturday. The Bearcats' past two trips to SMU were eventful to say the least.
Two seasons ago, Desmond Ridder had his coming-out party at SMU's Gerald J. Ford Stadium, running for a career-high 179 yards and three touchdowns (including a 91-yarder) and completing 13 of 21 passes for 126 yards and another score in a nationally televised 42-13 rout of the Mustangs.
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Before that, the Bearcats escaped Dallas in 2018 with a 26-20 win in overtime. Ridder threw for two touchdowns and had career highs in completions (33), pass attempts (50), passing yards (352) and total offense (399), and James Wiggins returned an interception 86 yards for a game-winning touchdown.
Neither Wiggins nor Ridder will make this season's trip to SMU (Ridder and the Atlanta Falcons will face the Cincinnati Bengals at Paycor Stadium on Sunday), but Cincinnati senior wide receiver and team captain Tre Tucker will.
Tucker, who had career highs in catches (seven) and yards (114) in a 48-14 win over the Mustangs last season at Nippert Stadium, said he's expecting another raucous crowd at SMU on Saturday.
"We played them here last year on our senior day and it went really well for us," he said. "I'm pretty sure they have us targeted. I don't know if it's their homecoming or not, but I heard something like that. So I know they're going to come out firing."
Saturday will be SMU's homecoming. The Mustangs (3-3, 1-1 American Athletic Conference) will look to end their three-game skid against the Bearcats (5-1, 2-0).
3 keys to victory for Cincinnati Bearcats football vs. SMU Mustangs
1. Be ready: Saturday's kickoff will be early. The ball will go up at 11 a.m. CST. There won't be a lot of build-up before the game like an ordinary late afternoon or evening start. That will either be good or bad for the Bearcats. Cincinnati senior linebacker Ty Van Fossen said he prefers the early games because he's "not waiting around a hotel room all day." Hopefully for Van Fossen, his teammates agree.
2. Play clean football: Cincinnati has been snake-bitten by penalties this season. But that may have changed. The Bearcats are coming off a bye week. The last time they took the field (Oct. 8 against South Florida for homecoming), they had a season low in penalties (four) and penalty yards (35). That needs to continue in Dallas.
"That's something we emphasized over the break here and through the bye week," Cincinnati coach Luke Fickell said. "We'll see how we've grown, not just in this coming week but really in the second half of the season."
3. Stop the run: Dual-threat quarterbacks have given Cincinnati fits. The Bearcats allowed 224 rushing yards in its last game. USF quarterback Gerry Bohanon accounted for 117 of those. SMU quarterback Tanner Mordecai leads the AAC in passing yards per game (336). But he also rushed for a team-high 74 yards, including a career-long 60-yard score, last week against Navy. Cincinnati will need to stop the run Saturday if it's going to win its 19th straight AAC game.
How to watch Cincinnati Bearcats football vs. SMU Mustangs
Time: Noon on Saturday
Where: Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas
TV: Mark Jones (play-by-play), Robert Griffin III (analyst) and Quint Kessenich (sideline) will have the call on ESPN.
Radio: Dan Hoard (play-by-play), Jim Kelly Jr. (analyst) and Mo Egger (host/engineer) will have the UC radio network call on WLW-AM (700), Sirius 158 or 203 and SXM App 966.
Live stream: ESPN+
Betting line: Cincinnati was a 3.5-point favorite 24 hours before kickoff.
Series history: Saturday will be the seventh meeting between the two programs. Cincinnati owns a 5-1 lead in the all-time series, including a 3-0 mark at SMU. The Mustangs' only win in the series came in 2017 at Nippert Stadium, when they defeated the Bearcats 31-28 in overtime.
Cincinnati Bearcats football prediction
Fickell and his staff have routinely done an effective job of preparing Cincinnati for games following bye weeks. The Bearcats are 4-1 under Fickell in games after a bye. SMU will have an extra boost, hosting Cincinnati for its homecoming. But the Bearcats will have had an extra week to heal and an extra week to prepare. UC wins, 37-24.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati football: No. 21 Bearcats look to spoil SMU's homecoming
