Victory Bell Week: Miami (OH) Preview
By: Ryan Roberts
On Saturday September 16th, the 127th edition of the Battle for the Victory Bell between Cincinnati and Miami will take place inside historic Nippert Stadium. It's Nipp at Night as the Bearcats and Redhawks will kickoff at 7:00 pm in front of a sell out crowd, the 13th consecutive sell out for the Bearcats inside of Nippert Stadium.
Quick Facts:
- . The UC-Miami series is the oldest non-conference college football rivalry....if you want to call it a rivalry. Cincinnati hasn't lost this game since 2005 and have won the past 16 match ups between the two schools.
- Cincinnati is tied for the nation's highest home winning percentage (96.3% ; 26-1 record) since the 2019 season. Clemson owns the same home record during those years.
- Cincinnati owns the all time series advantage, 60-59, with 7 ties.
- Cincinnati won last season's match up 38-17 at Paul Brown Stadium and have won by an average of 21 points during their 16 game win streak in the series.
- Cincinnati is currently a 14 point favorite with the over/under set at 45 ( Caesar's Sportsbook)
How they got here:
The Bearcats come in sporting a 2-0 record after going on the road and defeating Pitt, 27-21, this past Saturday. Corey Kiner put together his second consecutive 100 yard rushing game en route to a career high 153 yards on 20 carries. In week one, Emory Jones passed for 345 yards and earned Big 12 Newcomer and Offensive Player of the Week in a 66-13 win over Eastern Kentucky.
Chuck Martin's Redhawks come in 1-1 after defeating UMass 41-28 and losing to Miami, FL 38-3 in week 1. This wlll be Miami's third straight road game.
Players to Watch:
When the Redhawks are on offense, everything starts with quarterback Brett Gabbert. The senior quarterback is experienced and is coming off a game in which he threw for 302 yards and 4 touchdowns. His primary target was receiver Gage Larvadain, who had eight catches for 273 yards and 3 touchdowns. Running back Rashod Amos is coming off his first 100 yard rush game of his career, having rushed for 115 yards on 23 carries against UMass.
Gabbert is prone to mistakes. He threw two interceptions in the UMass win and hasn't been efficient as he has completed just 55.8% of his passes through the first two games. (24-43). The Redhawks are just 4-20 on third down conversions and 0-3 on 4th down attempts.
Defensively, Chuck Martin's team is led by Kent, OH redshirt junior linebacker Matt Salopek. He finished with just 3 tackles in the Miami (FL) loss but racked up 14 tackles in the win over UMass. The strength of the defense is similar to the Bearcats, as their primary play makers are in the front 7. Linebacker Ty Wise is second on the team in tackles (10), while defensive linemen Kobe Hilton and Brian Ugwu, along with linebacker Domini Nardone, all have 8 tackles through 2 games. Miami is physical at the point of attack and want to get down hill to put pressure on the offensive line. Miami has 7 TFL and 4 sacks coming in to the Cincinnati match up.
As far as the kicking game goes, Graham Nicholson has knocked down all three of his field goal attempts, with a long of 48.
Scott Satterfield's Take on the Redhawks:
Predictions and Final Takes:
Cincinnati's defensive line has been a problem for the opposition in both games to date. They limited Pittsburgh to just 83 rushing yards and quarterback Phil Jurkovek completed 10 of his 32 passing attempts. Through two games, Cincinnati's secondary has allowed just 23 completions on 57 attempts.
The offensive line has come together quicker than most predicted and helped produce a 100 yard rusher in both games played.
The Bearcats have scored in multiple ways. They've used quick 4 and 5 play drives to put points on the board with chunk plays and also got 3 points off a 17 play 65 yard drive that took up over 8 minutes just before the half against Pitt.
While it's too early for bold predictions on the overall outcome of the season, the Bearcats should improve to 3-0 in dominating fashion with Oklahoma in week 4 for a Big Noon Kickoff.
Cincinnati 41 Miami 10
How to watch and listen:
If you can't make it to the game in person, the game will be aired liVe on ESPN+ or you can listen to the great Dan Hoard with color commentator Jim Kelly Jr on WEBN 102.7 FM.
More on the Pitt Win and Season Outlook Below: