Year 1 in the Big 12 offered plenty of growing pains for a new-look Cincinnati. Can the Bearcats build on their Power Conference status in Year 2?
We've seen it in college football plenty of times: Teams miss their window to jump leagues or divisions. What, in the moment, seems like a logical move up in competition turns out to be more difficult when the changes take place. Look no further than Cincinnati, for example. The Bearcats became the first Group of Five participant in the four-team College Football Playoff.
Of course, it culminated in Cincy's appearance in the CFP in 2021, following a close loss to rising Georgia in the year prior's Peach Bowl. They produced a top-five NFL draft pick in that class, CB Ahmad "Sauce" Gardner, who quickly blossomed into one of the NFL's premier corners. QB Desmond Ridder even started some games with the Falcons.
It was time for a change at QB after Emory Jones left for the NFL. Cincinnati went and landed Brendan Sorsby from Indiana, a capable option quarterback that ultimately offers a lateral step from Jones. Alongside Sorsby enters UTEP deep threat Tyrin Smith and FAU's second-leading WR Tony Johnson. While the offense likely experiences a lot of improvement, there's genuine concerns about the defense. Corleone may or may not play, that bit is up in the air. The likely preseason All-American was diagnosed with blod clots during the summer and was labeled out "indefinitely." He did return to the team, but his availability early in the year – or at all – is certainly in question.
Good news: the offense should be much better. We could see a 40+ climb in PPD rank from last year to this coming year, should the key additions play to their potential. Returning one of the league's most experienced offensive lines helps here.
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