No. 4 Cincinnati stays unbeaten, beats East Carolina 35-13

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Cincinnati's Leonard Taylor (11) stiff-arms East Carolina's Aaron Ramseur (51) after catching the ball during the first half of an NCAA college football game in Raleigh, N.C., Friday, Nov. 26, 2021. (AP Photo/Karl B DeBlaker)

GREENVILLE, N.C. ā€“ No. 4 Cincinnati looked comfortable playing its first game in playoff position.

The Bearcats handled business in their final road game of the season Friday, beating East Carolina 35-13 in a quest to maintain a spot among the top four in the College Football Playoff rankings.

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ā€œWe knew there were more things at stake,ā€ coach Luke Fickell said. ā€œItā€™s great when you have a mature group that you donā€™t have to go over every little thing. You trust that theyā€™re enjoying it, but they have to understand that to whom much is given, much is expected.ā€

Desmond Ridder threw two touchdown passes and Cincinnati (12-0, 8-0 American Athletic Conference, CFP No. 4) completed a perfect regular season. The Bearcats are trying to become the first team outside of a Power Five conference to compete in the four-team CFP.

ā€œWe got another one and we have to finish strong,ā€ Ridder said.

Theyā€™ll be at home when facing Houston next week in the AAC title game.

ā€œPut yourselves in position to play for championships, a lot of other things can happen,ā€ Fickell said.

Defense and special teams helped put the game away for Cincinnati. Arquon Bush blocked a field goal and Ahmad Gardner returned the ball 60 yards for a fourth-quarter touchdown to make it 28-6.

ā€œWe always get the job done,ā€ Bush said.

Less than four minutes later, Darrian Beavers intercepted a pass at the 7:27 mark, but the ensuing possession resulted in Cincinnatiā€™s second turnover inside the East Carolina 5-yard line.

The Bearcats had four trips into East Carolina territory that resulted in no points, which let ECU hang around, but never really threaten.

East Carolina (7-5, 5-3) had a four-game winning streak snapped.

ā€œYou see why theyā€™re in contention for a national championship,ā€ East Carolina coach Mike Houston said of the Bearcats. ā€œI thought our kids played really, really hard. I thought they did many things well. ā€¦ For our young players, itā€™s a great learning experience.ā€

Ridder finished 17-for-28 for 301 yards with two interceptions. Alec Pierce caught eight passes for 136 yards. Jerome Ford rushed for 85 yards and a touchdown.

In a matter of four Cincinnati snaps early in the second quarter, the Bearcats went from down 3-0 to up 14-3.

Ridder connected with Leonard Taylor on a 44-yard touchdown play. Cincinnati got the ball back and went 58 yards in three plays, with Ridderā€™s 53-yard throw to Pierce setting up Ford for a 2-yard scoring run.

Then Cincinnati drove 88 yards on seven plays with Pierce snagging a 28-yard touchdown catch.

After building a 21-3 lead, Cincinnati botched another chance on Fordā€™s fumble at the East Carolina 3 on its final drive of the first half.

East Carolina closed within 21-6 and then drove to the Cincinnati 5 early in the fourth quarter. But after a penalty, the Pirates were ready to settle for Owen Dafferā€™s third field goal before Bush disrupted those plans in what seemed like a game-clinching sequence with 11:07 remaining.

The All-America cornerback Gardner grabbed the bouncing ball and was way out in front of the pack for a score.

ā€œI was just making plays as they came,ā€ Gardner said. ā€œI wasnā€™t trying to be a superhero.ā€

East Carolinaā€™s winning streak marked its longest string of success in AAC play in its eight seasons as a league member.

Cincinnati also went 12-0 in the 2009 regular season.

The Pirates, facing their highest-ranked team since a 27-10 home loss in 2006 to then-No. 4 West Virginia, were held to 282 yards of total offense.

ā€œIt also shows the level of defense that Cincinnati had,ā€ Houston said. ā€œWe thought we would be able to run it better, but we couldnā€™t.ā€

Holton Ahlers was 19-for-38 for 228 yards, an interception and a 12-yard touchdown pass to Jsi Hatfield.

THE TAKEAWAY

Cincinnati: The Bearcats wasted numerous scoring chances and that could have haunted them if not for a stellar defensive performance. They gave up only one touchdown and held East Carolina to 54 rushing yards ā€“ almost 120 below the Piratesā€™ season average.

East Carolina: The Pirates, whoā€™ll finish in a third-place tie in the AAC with Central Florida and Saturdayā€™s Tulsa-Southern Methodist winner, were aiming for a rare victory against a Top 25 team. With this result, the Pirates are 13-63-1 vs. Top 25 foes. East Carolina outscored its four AAC visitors in the first quarter by a combined 27-0 this year, but its 77 yards of total offense in the first half Saturday put it in a bind.

TAKE THAT, COACH

In the second quarter, Ridder passed Bearcats quarterbacks coach Gino Guidugli (11,930 yards) as the all-time leader in program history in total yards. Ridder is also the AAC career leader in total yards.

Meanwhile, Ford eclipsed the 1,000-yard rushing mark for the season. Heā€™s at 1,056 yards.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

Cincinnati wasnā€™t threatened much in this game, but the bar might be high for the Bearcats. Itā€™s hard to see them climbing after this result, though the performance should be enough to hold steady.

UP NEXT

Cincinnati: The Bearcats did not play Houston in the regular season.

East Carolina: Awaits a bowl invitation for its first postseason game since 2014.


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