Cincinnati Football 2024 Game-By-Game Predictions Part One

The Bearcats have the right schedule mix to bounce back this season.

Cincinnati Bearcats quarterback Brendan Sorsby (2), left, smiles during spring football practice, Monday, March 4, 2024, at Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati. / Kareem Elgazzar/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK

CINCINNATI — Football season is almost here in Cincinnati! 

The Bearcats fell flat with a 3-9 record last year, but a deeper roster and new quarterback has hope building for 2024. Scott Satterfield's team has 12 chances to prove its fortitude with eyes on at least getting back into a bowl game come December.

Here are my predictions for the first six games of the season.

V. Towson - 56-17 Bearcats

The Tigers are a mid-tier FCS team that should present little resistance for Cincinnati. Things will look a lot like they did against Eastern Kentucky in a 66-13 win to open the 2023 season.

I expect Samaj Jones to get some decent run at quarterback in the second half of this one.

V. Pitt - 27-26 Bearcats 

Cincinnati wins back-to-back games in this rivalry as Pitt's offense with an unproven new quarterback stifles in the red zone one too many times.

Brendan Sorsby's bruising run style is the difference in the other red zone as Cincinnati escapes with a 2-0 record entering a matchup with Miami (OH) while expelling some red-zone demons.

@ Miami (OH) - 20-17 Bearcats

The RedHawks show why they will contend for back-to-back MAC Championships this fall with a nasty defensive performance at home.

Still, Carter Brown and Mason Fletcher show they can flip games with their legs. Brown hits some long bombs and Fletcher keeps the lowly Miami offense in poor field position during enough of the game to get the Victory Bell back.

V. Houston - 36-23 Bearcats

The Houston Cougars are arguably the worst team in the conference and shouldn't come out of Nippert Stadium with a win. Sorsby and Corey Kiner expose a run defense that was almost as bad as Cincinnati's last season (168.6 yards per game allowed by Houston) to the tune of 300-plus yards.

@ Texas Tech - 33-24 Red Raiders

Cincinnati faces the first team truly better than them on their schedule and falls on the road. Tech could very well have a top-40 offense and defense by overall efficiency and Cincinnati's first trip there in the Big 12 sobers up a 4-0 start to the season.

@ UCF - 36-35 Knights

Consecutive road losses for the Bearcats as they lose to hated former AAC rival UCF on the road via a last-second field goal. These are two pretty evenly matched teams, but I think Cincinnati's defense gives up one or two more plays to make the difference.

Will Cincinnati stay above or at .500 the rest of the season to earn a bowl berth? Find out how they finish out our projected 4-2 start in part two coming next week.

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