| 2008Cincinnati Bearcats football | |
|---|---|
Big East champion | |
Orange Bowl, L 7–20 vsVirginia Tech | |
| Conference | Big East Conference |
| Ranking | |
| Coaches | No. 17 |
| AP | No. 17 |
| Record | 11–3 (6–1 Big East) |
| Head coach |
|
| Offensive coordinator | Jeff Quinn (2nd season) |
| Offensive scheme | Multiple |
| Defensive coordinator | Joe Tresey (2nd season) |
| Base defense | 4–3 |
| Home stadium | Nippert Stadium |
Seasons | |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | W | L | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 17Cincinnati $ | 6 | – | 1 | 11 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pittsburgh | 5 | – | 2 | 9 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 23West Virginia | 5 | – | 2 | 9 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rutgers | 5 | – | 2 | 8 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Connecticut | 3 | – | 4 | 8 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| South Florida | 2 | – | 5 | 8 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Louisville | 1 | – | 6 | 5 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Syracuse | 1 | – | 6 | 3 | – | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The2008 Cincinnati Bearcats football team represented theUniversity of Cincinnati in the2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team, coached byBrian Kelly, played its homes game inNippert Stadium. Kelly was in his second full season with the Bearcats after coaching them to a 31–21 win againstSouthern Miss in the2007 PapaJohns.com Bowl. On Friday, November 28, 2008, the Bearcats clinched a share of theBig East Conference title for the first time since joining theBig East in 2005. With a victory overSyracuse on November 29, 2008 the Bearcats became the outright football champions of the Big East and set a record with an average attendance of 31,964. After a disappointing loss toVirginia Tech in the2009 Orange Bowl, the Bearcats finished 17th in theAP Poll for the second consecutive year.
| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 28 | 7:30 pm | Eastern Kentucky* | W 40–7 | 26,913 | |||
| September 6 | 3:30 pm | at No. 4Oklahoma* | ABC | L 26–52 | 84,476 | ||
| September 20 | 7:30 pm | Miami (OH)* |
| ESPN360 | W 45–20 | 31,629 | |
| September 27 | 7:30 pm | atAkron* | FSN Ohio | W 17–15 | 16,927 | ||
| October 3 | 8:00 pm | atMarshall* | ESPN | W 33–10 | 29,237 | ||
| October 11 | 12:00 pm | Rutgers![]() |
| Big East Network | W 13–10 | 32,370 | |
| October 25 | 12:00 pm | atConnecticut | Big East Network | L 16–40 | 40,000 | ||
| October 30 | 7:45 pm | No. 23South Florida |
| ESPN | W 24–10 | 31,175 | |
| November 8 | 7:00 pm | at No. 20West Virginia | ESPNU | W 26–23OT | 59,834 | ||
| November 14 | 8:00 pm | atLouisville | No. 22 | ESPN2 | W 28–20 | 37,822 | |
| November 22 | 7:15 pm | No. 20Pittsburgh | No. 19 |
| ESPN2 | W 28–21 | 35,098 |
| November 29 | 12:00 pm | Syracuse | No. 16 |
| Big East Network | W 30–10 | 34,603 |
| December 6 | 11:30 pm | atHawaii* | No. 13 | ESPN2 | W 29–24 | 40,549 | |
| January 1 | 8:00 pm | No. 19Virginia Tech* | No. 12 | FOX | L 7–20 | 73,602 | |
| |||||||
| Week | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | Final |
| AP | RV | RV | — | — | — | — | — | RV | RV | — | RV | 22 | 19 | 16 | 13 | 12 | 17 |
| Coaches Poll | RV | RV | — | — | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | — | RV | 22 | 20 | 16 | 12 | 12 | 17 |
| Harris | Not released | RV | RV | RV | RV | — | RV | 23 | 20 | 16 | 13 | 12 | Not released | ||||
| BCS | Not released | — | — | — | 22 | 19 | 16 | 13 | 12 | Not released | |||||||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eastern Kentucky | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 |
| Cincinnati | 6 | 20 | 14 | 0 | 40 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati | 0 | 13 | 7 | 6 | 26 |
| #4Oklahoma | 14 | 7 | 21 | 10 | 52 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Miami | 0 | 13 | 7 | 0 | 20 |
| Cincinnati | 10 | 14 | 14 | 7 | 45 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati | 7 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 17 |
| Akron | 3 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 15 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati | 2 | 14 | 10 | 7 | 33 |
| Marshall | 0 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 10 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rutgers | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 10 |
| Cincinnati | 3 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 13 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati | 10 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 16 |
| Connecticut | 10 | 0 | 10 | 20 | 40 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #23 South Florida | 7 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 10 |
| Cincinnati | 10 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 24 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati | 13 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 26 |
| #20 West Virginia | 7 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 3 | 23 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #22 Cincinnati | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
| Louisville | 7 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 20 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #20 Pittsburgh | 7 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 21 |
| #19 Cincinnati | 0 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Syracuse | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 10 |
| #16 Cincinnati | 7 | 6 | 10 | 7 | 30 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #13 Cincinnati | 3 | 7 | 0 | 19 | 29 |
| Hawaii | 0 | 3 | 14 | 7 | 24 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #12 Cincinnati | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| #21 Virginia Tech | 0 | 10 | 3 | 7 | 20 |
|
|
|
|
| Player | Position | Round | Pick | NFL club |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Connor Barwin | DE | 2 | 46 | Houston Texans |
| Kevin Huber | P | 5 | 142 | Cincinnati Bengals |
| DeAngelo Smith | CB | 5 | 143 | Dallas Cowboys |
| Brandon Underwood | S | 6 | 187 | Green Bay Packers |
| Mike Mickens | CB | 7 | 227 | Dallas Cowboys |
| Trevor Canfield | G | 7 | 254 | Arizona Cardinals |