What Does The Bearcats' 'Relevancy' Mean To You?

UC is aiming for sixth straight winning football season this fall, first in the Big 12.

Alex Frank | Jan 17, 2023

In this story:

MACON — Bearcats fans want nothing more than to see the football team hoisting the College Football Playoff national championship trophy; or the men's basketball team cutting down the nets with "One Shining Moment" playing.

But have Bearcats fans ever stopped to consider how relevant both programs are every year? The success of the Bearcats football program over the last five years has made it shine on a national level.

That didn't use to be the case. If you remember those days, you appreciate how relevant the football program is now.

Let me ask you a question: would you rather the Bearcats win a national championship—then immediately become irrelevant again? Or, would you rather them always be relevant but maybe not win a national championship?

The Bearcats football program was once irrelevant. Think about players like Gino Guidugli and coaches like Rick Minter. Sure you knew who they were on a local level, but did people on a national level know them?

That stuff matters. If they're talked about nationally, that means they matter. They're being talked about in the grand scheme of college athletics, leading to more big-time recruits.

The College Football Playoff ignited the department's trajectory. But do not take their relevancy for granted. And do not get carried away with expectations just because they made the CFP. Appreciate that UC matters on a national level; they're now going to play in the Big 12 and have been a consistent top-25 football team for the last five years.

The same goes for men's basketball. Plenty of fans are frustrated that nine straight NCAA Tournament appearances under Mick Cronin resulted in just one Sweet 16 berth. But what if I told you that not even Kentucky made nine straight NCAA Tournaments from 2011-2019?

Appreciate 13 football bowl games in the last 16 seasons—because it didn't use to be that way. Looking forward, a winning season in 2023 would be the program's sixth in a row, the first time in the past 70 seasons of Bearcats football.

Being "relevant" matters. It should matter to you too.

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