Can Cincinnati Bearcats football win in November?
· Yahoo Sports
October is in the books for the Cincinnati Bearcats with a not-so-pleasing 1-3 record after being routed 49-25 by No. 6 Utah on Halloween night.
The Bearcats began with a 4-0 September, never leaving Cincinnati, before beginning October with a late-night lopsided loss in the desert to Arizona and a last-minute heartbreaker in West Virginia.
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Now it's onto November and a month that hasn't been kind to head coach Scott Satterfield during his UC tenure. The Bearcats will begin at Houston Nov. 7, a team that lost to Utah only 21-13 in Salt Lake City, Oct. 24.
"We come in every game expecting to win, and it's frustrating when we don't," UC quarterback JC French IV said. "We're all really frustrated right now with how we played, but I think we can compete with anybody in this conference and country. That's just something we have to hold ourselves to, keep moving forward and bounce back next game."
November wins few, far between for Cincinnati Bearcats
The last November win for UC under Satterfield came in his opening season of 2023. It was also UC's first Big 12 victory.
After a 2-0 start, including a win at Pitt, UC dropped seven straight games until Nov. 11 when they picked off Houston quarterback Donovan Smith three times and Corey Kiner ran for 129 yards and two touchdowns. UC won 24-14 and Cougars coach Dana Holgorsen was fired two weeks later.
Nearly three years later, that's UC's only Big 12 November win.
UC Bearcats favorable starts have turned into November nightmares
The 2024 season was highlighted by beating Arizona State on Homecoming, Oct. 19, 24-14. The Sun Devils and future NFL running back Cam Skattebo would go on a run that put them in the College Football Playoff.
UC would proceed to lose at Colorado on Oct. 26, then drop all four games in November to West Virginia, Iowa State, Kansas State and TCU to go from 5-2 to 5-7 with no postseason invites to anything.
Last season, many remember the 7-1 start as the Bearcats reeled off seven wins in a row after the opening loss to Nebraska. Then came Nov. 1 at No. 24 Utah, with the pageantry of ESPN College GameDay that morning in Salt Lake City. Later that night, the Utes ran by the Bearcats 45-14, with the first of four November losses.
From there, it was a giveaway game vs. Arizona, a missed opportunity at home vs. No. 11 BYU, and Brendan Sorsby's finale at TCU. A flurry of opt-outs followed for the Jan. 2 FedEx Liberty Bowl vs. No. 22 Navy and UC was 0-for-November again, with a fifth straight loss against the Midshipmen, where opting out is highly discouraged.
Your Bearcats' Big 12 record in November?
1-11.
For the Bearcats to have any form of postseason run, the month of November must be solved. Playing two more ranked teams makes it far from easy, but it's no different for any other team in a power conference.
"I feel like each game is a new season for every team," UC coach Scott Satterfield said. "You turn the page. Everything is about Houston next week. You learn from the things you've done in the past, but you've got to focus everything you can on Houston. They do a great job. Their quarterback (Connor Weigman) is outstanding and they're coming off a bye week this week. Another Top 15 in the country that we have to go play."
The Bearcats finish the season Nov. 28 at No. 8 BYU. In between the Bearcats go to Iowa State, which just beat No. 24 Oklahoma State in Ames, 51-49 and Colorado, which knocked off Kansas State Oct. 31 in overtime in Boulder 27-24.
Nothing will come easy.
"You just have to stay positive throughout the process, or else things will get worse," linebacker Jonathan Thompson said.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Can Cincinnati Bearcats football win in November?