Cincinnati Bearcats
Big 12
0-0 (0-0 conf)
SP+ #56
Ratings
2025 final
- SP+
- 4.5 (#56)
- SP+ Offense
- 30.2
- SP+ Defense
- 26.4
- SRS
- 2.9
- FPI
- 3.7
- Elo
- 1471
- Talent
- 644
- Recruiting
- 200 (#58)
2026 Outlook
Projected wins
5.1p10 3.0 — p90 7.0
| Round | Prob | |
|---|---|---|
| Win conference | 0.1% | |
| Make CFP | 0.0% | |
| Quarterfinal | 0.0% | |
| Semifinal | 0.0% | |
| Natl. final | 0.0% | |
| Natl. champ | 0.0% |
Schedule
proj record 5.2–6.8
Schedule
34th
toughest of 136
Offenses faced
40th
toughest of 136
Defenses faced
33rd
toughest of 136
Strength of schedule — how tough this team's opponents are, ranked 1 (hardest) to 136 (easiest) · by 2025 SP+ · 1 FCS game.
| Wk | Opponent | SP+ | Score | Proj | Win% | Res |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | vsBoston College | -8.5 | 27-19 | +7.9 | 69% | — |
| 2 | vsWestern Carolina | FCS | 45-3* | +41.8 | 100% | — |
| 3 | vsMiami (OH) | -3.4 | 28-22 | +6.2 | 65% | — |
| 4 | vsKansas State | +7 | 22-27 | -4.5 | 39% | — |
| 5 | @Arizona | +12 | 21-33 | -12.5 | 22% | — |
| 7 | @West Virginia | -6.8 | 25-24 | +0.9 | 52% | — |
| 8 | vsTexas Tech | +27.6 | 20-40 | -20.6 | 11% | — |
| 9 | vsUtah | +22.2 | 21-35 | -14.4 | 19% | — |
| 10 | @Houston | +7.4 | 22-28 | -6.0 | 36% | — |
| 11 | @Iowa State | +9.9 | 20-28 | -7.9 | 32% | — |
| 12 | vsColorado | -8.3 | 25-22 | +3.5 | 58% | — |
| 13 | @BYU | +15.9 | 18-34 | -15.3 | 18% | — |
* FBS-vs-FCS estimate from the SP+ gap — no per-game model for FCS opponents.
Quarterbacks · 4
2026 · 64
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| QB | 1st | JC French IV← Georgia Southern | JR | 6'1" | 200 | ★★★ |
| QB | 2nd | Samaj Jones | FR | 5'11" | 207 | ★★★★ |
| QB | 3rd | Brady Lichtenberg | SR | 6'1" | 200 | — |
| QB | — | Liam O'Brien← Pennsylvania | — | — | — | — |
Running Backs · 5
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RB | 1st | Tawee Walker | SR | 5'8" | 218 | — |
| RB | 2nd | Zylan Perry← Louisiana | JR | 5'11" | 207 | ★★★ |
| RB | 3rd | Cole Tabb← Stanford | FR | 5'8" | 200 | ★★★ |
| RB | 4th | Zion Johnson | FR | 5'8" | 185 | — |
| RB | 5th | Gi'Bran Payne← Notre Dame | JR | 5'10" | 205 | ★★★ |
Wide Receivers · 8
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WR | 1st | Cade Wolford← Kent State | FR | 5'10" | 190 | ★★★★ |
| WR | 2nd | Jeff Caldwell | SR | 6'5" | 215 | — |
| WR | 3rd | Isaiah Johnson | SO | 5'10" | 185 | — |
| WR | 4th | JaVonnie Gibson← Oklahoma | JR | 6'2" | 211 | ★★★ |
| WR | 5th | Elijah Jones | FR | 5'11" | 195 | ★★★ |
| WR | — | Larenzo Fenner← South Dakota | — | — | — | ★★★ |
| WR | — | Flynn Schiele← Colorado School Of Mines | — | — | — | ★★ |
| WR | — | Malachi Henry← Central Arkansas | — | — | — | ★★★ |
Tight Ends · 2
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TE | 1st | Gavin Grover | SO | 6'6" | 255 | — |
| TE | 2nd | Patrick Gurd | SR | 6'4" | 250 | — |
Offensive Line · 1
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OL | — | Evan Tengesdahl | SO | 6'3" | 320 | ★★★ |
Defensive Line · 12
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DL | 1st | Chidera Otutu← UTSA | SO | 6'1" | 305 | ★★★ |
| DL | 2nd | Jalen Hunt | SR | 6'2" | 315 | — |
| DL | 3rd | Isaiah Rogers | SR | 6'2" | 297 | ★★★ |
| DL | 4th | Marquaze Parker | SO | 6'2" | 285 | ★★★ |
| DL | 5th | Dontay Corleone | SR | 6'1" | 335 | ★★★ |
| DL | 6th | Jaylon White-McClain | JR | 6'4" | 273 | ★★★ |
| DL | 7th | Rob Jackson | SR | 6'4" | 277 | — |
| DL | 8th | CJ McCray | SR | 6'3" | 260 | — |
| DL | 9th | Kamron Neal | FR | 6'2" | 268 | ★★★ |
| DL | 10th | Elijah Gunn | SO | 6'0" | 310 | — |
| DL | — | Josh Hough← PennWest California | — | — | — | ★★★ |
| EDGE | — | Thomas Johnson← North Carolina Central | — | — | — | ★★★ |
Linebackers · 12
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LB | 1st | Filip Maciorowski← Northern Illinois | SO | 6'3" | 225 | ★★★ |
| LB | 2nd | Jonathan Thompson | JR | 6'2" | 230 | ★★★ |
| LB | 3rd | Jack Dingle | SR | 6'4" | 240 | — |
| LB | 4th | Simeon Coleman | SO | 5'11" | 225 | ★★★ |
| LB | 5th | Brian Simms III | SO | 6'3" | 235 | ★★★ |
| LB | 6th | Montay Weedon | SO | 6'0" | 220 | ★★★ |
| LB | 7th | Damaine Wilson← Georgia State | SO | 6'2" | 215 | ★★★ |
| LB | 8th | Ben Blevins | SR | 5'11" | 235 | — |
| LB | 9th | George Leibold | FR | 6'1" | 225 | — |
| LB | 10th | Terrell Holcomb | FR | 6'1" | 220 | ★★★ |
| LB | 11th | Myles Harrison | FR | 6'2" | 227 | ★★★ |
| LB | — | Patrick Bauer← Illinois State | — | — | — | ★★★ |
Defensive Backs · 16
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CB | 1st | MJ Cannon← Bowling Green | JR | 6'3" | 205 | ★★★ |
| CB | 2nd | Jacob Finley← Northern Illinois | JR | 5'11" | 184 | ★★★ |
| CB | 3rd | Logan Wilson | SR | 5'9" | 183 | — |
| CB | 4th | Matthew McDoom | SR | 5'9" | 180 | — |
| CB | 5th | KK Meier← UTSA | JR | 6'0" | 190 | ★★★ |
| CB | 6th | Kenny Worthy III← Washington State | FR | 6'0" | 177 | ★★★ |
| CB | 7th | Daniel James | FR | 5'10" | 185 | ★★★ |
| CB | 8th | Stanley Clyne | SO | 6'2" | 180 | — |
| DB | 1st | Antwan Peek Jr. | JR | 6'1" | 214 | — |
| DB | 2nd | Marqavious Saboor | SO | 5'11" | 185 | ★★★ |
| DB | 3rd | CJ Crite | FR | 6'1" | 202 | ★★★ |
| S | 1st | Jasper Beeler← Northern Illinois | JR | 6'2" | 194 | ★★★ |
| S | 2nd | Trevon Gola-Callard | SR | 6'0" | 195 | — |
| S | 3rd | Ty Goodwill← South Alabama | SO | 6'2" | 200 | ★★★ |
| S | 4th | Xavier Williams | SR | 6'2" | 220 | — |
| S | 5th | CJ Jones | FR | 5'9" | 190 | — |
Special Teams · 4
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LS | 1st | Eli Stein | JR | 6'3" | 225 | ★★ |
| P | 1st | Max Fletcher | JR | 6'6" | 190 | ★★★ |
| P | — | Dino Beslagic | JR | 6'4" | 207 | — |
| PK | 1st | Stephen Rusnak | SR | 6'0" | 200 | — |
Projected Season
2026 · win prob / game
Exp. Wins
5.2
Exp. Losses
6.8
Toss-ups
2
bars: model win probabilityfav / toss-up / dog
2025 · pct vs FBS
SP+ Off
30.264
Off PPA
+0.3092
Pass PPA
+0.4391
Rush PPA
+0.2388
Success
47%85
Explosive
1.3279
PlayerMedian (50th)percentile vs league
SP+ Trend
points vs avg team
— Overall— Offense— Defense
SP+ = opponent-adjusted points vs an average team. Overall & Offense higher = better; Defense lower = better.
Advanced
2025 · opponent-adjusted PPA / play
| Split | Offense | Defense |
|---|---|---|
| Overall | +0.30 | +0.19 |
| Passing | +0.43 | +0.25 |
| Rushing | +0.23 | +0.14 |
| 1st Down | +0.17 | +0.05 |
| 2nd Down | +0.27 | +0.15 |
| 3rd Down | +0.58 | +0.48 |
Scoring Trend
2025 · pts/game
PPG For
31.8
PPG Against
24.8
Differential
+6.9
— Points for— Points against
dots: W / L2025
- Overall
- 7-5
- Home
- 5-2
- Away
- 2-2
- Neutral
- 0-1
- Conference
- 5-4
- Non-Conference
- 2-1
- One-Score (≤8)
- 2-2
- Avg Margin
- +6.9
Situational Splits
2025 · record · pts
| Split | Record | PF | PA |
|---|---|---|---|
| Venue | |||
| Home | 5-2 | 34.4 | 19.6 |
| Away | 2-2 | 30.8 | 35.3 |
| Neutral | 0-2 | 15.0 | 27.5 |
| Competition | |||
| vs Ranked (SP+ 25) | 0-2 | 14.0 | 35.5 |
| Conference | 5-4 | 28.9 | 28.7 |
| Non-conference | 2-2 | 33.5 | 18.8 |
Season History · last 12
1 AP top-10 · 8 postseason
| Season | Record | Conf | SP+ | AP | Post |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 7-5 | 5-4 | #56 | #17 | 0-1 |
| 2024 | 5-7 | 3-6 | #72 | — | — |
| 2023 | 3-9 | 1-8 | #87 | — | — |
| 2022 | 9-3 | 6-2 | #24 | #20 | 0-1 |
| 2021 | 13-0 | 9-0 | #5 | #2 | 0-1 |
| 2020 | 9-0 | 7-0 | #9 | — | 0-1 |
| 2019 | 10-3 | 7-2 | #34 | — | 1-0 |
| 2018 | 10-2 | 6-2 | #49 | — | 1-0 |
| 2017 | 4-8 | 2-6 | #95 | — | — |
| 2016 | 4-8 | 1-7 | #82 | — | — |
| 2015 | 7-5 | 4-4 | #55 | — | 0-1 |
| 2014 | 9-3 | 7-1 | #48 | — | 0-1 |
Recent Form · last 5
0-5 SU · 0-4 ATS · O2/U2
Betting Profile
2025 · 12 w/ line
| Straight up | 7-6 |
| ATS | 6-650% |
| Over / Under | 7-5 O-U |
| — ATS splits — | |
| As favorite | 4-3 |
| As underdog | 2-3 |
| Home | 3-4 |
| Away | 2-2 |
vs closing line · splits show cover–no cover
Recruiting Classes
avg #58 · 10 blue-chip
■ 5★■ 4★■ 3★153 rated signees
| Class | Natl | Pts | 5★ | 4★ | 3★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | #58 | 200 | 0 | 1 | 18 |
| 2025 | #61 | 190 | 0 | 0 | 16 |
| 2024 | #51 | 197 | 0 | 1 | 13 |
| 2023 | #75 | 168 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| 2022 | #42 | 198 | 0 | 3 | 8 |
| 2021 | #42 | 191 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| 2020 | #40 | 195 | 0 | 2 | 10 |
| 2019 | #79 | 158 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 2018 | #48 | 193 | 0 | 1 | 22 |
| 2017 | #63 | 168 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
247Sports composite · class rank vs all FBS
Roster Talent
2026
Portal in 22net -1Out 23
Portal avg stars (in / out)3.0 / 3.1
Notable Portal Moves
| ▲ | Cade Wolford | WR | 4★ | ← Kent State |
| ▲ | JaVonnie Gibson | WR | 3★ | ← Oklahoma |
| ▲ | MJ Cannon | CB | 3★ | ← Bowling Green |
| ▲ | Larenzo Fenner | WR | 3★ | ← South Dakota |
| ▼ | Brendan Sorsby | QB | 5★ | → Texas Tech |
| ▼ | Evan Pryor | RB | 3★ | → Florida |
| ▼ | Caleb Goodie | WR | 3★ | → Missouri |
| ▼ | Noah Jennings | WR | 3★ | → Minnesota |
returning PPA · portal · talent composite · 2026
Injury Report · 0
No injuries reported.
Team News
20 items
- Cincinnati Bearcats Football Adds Fresh Opponent to 2030 Non-Conference ScheduleCincinnati Bearcats Football Adds Fresh Opponent to 2030 Non-Conference ScheduleCIN7h
- Highly decorated Cincinnati Bearcats offensive lineman adds to listCincinnati Bearcats guard Evan Tengesdahl has been nominated to the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team. Tengesdahl has numerous preseason honors.
- Vote on top offensive linemen in high school football preseasonTake a look at the top offensive linemen in Greater Cincinnati high school football in 2026. Be sure to vote for your favorite of the group.CIN22h
- Vote for top defensive linemen returning for 2026 high school footballTake a look at the top defensive linemen in Greater Cincinnati high school football in 2026. Be sure to vote for your favorite of the group.CIN22h
- Cody Campbell waves off Ken Paxton donation, says he could make 'nefarious deal' elsewhereCody Campbell said his donation to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's senate run was unrelated to Texas Tech's Brendan Sorsby situation.
- How Caleb Goodie’s Speed Impacts Mizzou’s OffenseHey, you know Mizzou has one of the fastest players in college football, right?
- Kentucky signee enrolls at UK for football workouts after being drafted by Cincinnati RedsTwo-sport athlete Matt Ponatoski made big news when he committed to Kentucky football and baseball in July 2025. Now, he has a big decision to make regarding his athletic future. The Cincinnati Reds selected Ponatoski with the No. 542 overall pick in the 18th round of this past weekend’s MLB Draft. When the Reds announced … Continued The post Kentucky signee enrolls at UK for football workouts after being drafted by Cincinnati Reds appeared first on Saturday Down South.CIN4d
- ‘Blindsided As Everybody Else’ — Analyst Highlights ‘Strangest Part’ of Brendan Sorsby’s Gambling ScandalFormer Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby will not play football this year after the NFL opted not to hold a supplemental draft in 2026. Sorsby has been the talk of both college football and the NFL after his gambling addiction led to a hard-fought court battle against the NCAA before capitulating and withdrawing his eligibility suit.
- Texas Tech cracks analyst’s top 10 offenses, even without Brendan SorsbyTexas Tech lost Brendan Sorsby this offseason, but they still have one of the best offenses in college football.
- Star Cincinnati Defender Speaks On The Newest Defensive CoordinatorStar Cincinnati Bearcats Football Defender Antwan Peek Jr. Speaks On The Newest Defensive CoordinatorCIN6d
- “Pancake With Us”: Cincinnati wants to prove it has the best o-line in college footballArmed with pancake batter and maple syrup, the Bearcats are ready to show the true merit of their offensive line.CIN6d
- Brett Yormark’s silence on Brendan Sorsby draws sharp criticism from Paul FinebaumOne of the most anticipated media days of the college football offseason was the Big 12’s. After the lengthy saga involving the Big 12, Brendan Sorsby, and Texas Tech, everyone wanted to hear what Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark had…
- Ranking the best players in the college football transfer portalWe adjusted our ranking after removing former No. 1 player Brendan Sorsby.
- 2026 Big 12 Media Day Storylines: Cincinnati BearcatsCincinnati has improved its record every season in the Big 12. Does the trend continue through 2026?CIN7d
- Previewing the top defensive backs in Cincinnati high school footballThe Cincinnati high school football scene is filled with skilled secondary players in 2026. Be sure to vote on your favorite from our 10 choices.CIN7d
- Cincinnati Bearcats Star Offensive Lineman Taran Tyo Speaks On UC's 2025 End Of Season SlumpCincinnati Bearcats Star Offensive Lineman Taran Tyo Speaks On UC's 2025 End Of Season SlumpCIN8d
- Why Cincinnati is One of Houston's Biggest Threats in the Big 12Can Cincinnati upset Houston?CIN8d
- "Want Absolutely Nothing to do With Texas Tech": Brendan Sorsby Saga Triggers Bigger Consequences for Joey McGuire and Co.Within days of the Brendan Sorsby ruling, three Power programs moved to cut Texas Tech out of their future schedules. Texas Tech’s stance in the Brendan Sorsby eligibility fight, which ended with Sorsby out for the 2026 season, drew sharp pushback from rivals.
- Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark missteps on Brendan Sorsby unnecessary, unseemlyBig 12 commissioner Brett Yormark avoided questions about the Brendan Sorsby gambling saga, creating a PR mess.
- NCAA Inquiry Opens New Chapter in Brendan Sorsby SagaThe Brendan Sorsby controversy is not going away anytime soon. The NCAA has sent a formal letter of inquiry to the University of Cincinnati regarding former quarterback Brendan Sorsby’s time with the Bearcats, opening a new phase in one of the most complicated gambling-related cases college football has seen in years. According to multiple reports,…