BC Football Countdown to Kickoff 2026: Cincinnati Preview
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Boston College is looking to improve off a two-win campaign in 2025.
The Eagles will travel to take on Cincinnati to begin the 2026 season this September.
Game Notes
- Who: Boston College vs. Cincinnati
- Head Coaches: Bill O’Brien, Boston College; Scott Satterfield, Cincinnati
- When: Saturday, September 5 at 3:30pm
- Where: Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio
Series History
These teams have met eight times in their history with the first coming in 1961. They have split these eight meetings, 4-4. Boston College won the first two meetings without allowing a point. Cincinnati got the best of the Eagles in their last game played in 2020.
- 9/23/1961 – Boston College 23, Cincinnati 0
- 10/17/1964 – Boston College 10, Cincinnati 0
- 11/4/1967 – Cincinnati 27, Boston College 21
- 10/26/1985 – Cincinnati 24, Boston College 17
- 9/10/1988 – Boston College 41, Cincinnati 7
- 10/12/1996 – Boston College 24, Cincinnati 17
- 9/27/1997 – Cincinnati 24, Boston College 6
- 1/2/2020 – Cincinnati 38, Boston College 6
Cincinnati 2025 Recap
It was a quick start for Cincinnati in 2025. After a season-opening loss to Nebraska, the Bearcats would win seven games in a row including a 5-0 start in Big 12 play. Cincinnati sat at 7-1 with victories over Iowa State, Kansas, and Baylor.
The final third of the season was not kind to Cincinnati. It finished the season with four straight losses against Utah, Arizona, BYU, and TCU. The Bearcats ended the regular season with a record of 7-5 and 5-4 in conference play. Cincinnati was selected for the Autozone Libert Bowl, which was a 35-13 loss to Navy.
Offense: Can new QB continue momentum?
Brendan Sorsby is gone. The former Bearcat was one of the biggest names in the transfer portal before landing at Texas Tech, and whatever else. This means Cincinnati had to hit the portal to land Georgia Southern transfer JC French IV to take over under center.
The question is — can French IV air it out like Sorsby?
Cincinnati moved fast last year and got it done through the air, which led to victories. The Bearcats went 6-0 when averaging ver 8.5 yards per completion. This year, French IV has plenty of wide outs to work with who expect to put up big numbers.
Despite the loss of Cyrus Allen, the Bearcats have an impressive group built through the transfer portal. JV Gibson comes over from Oklahoma along with Larenzo Fenner, Cade Wolford, and Flynn Schele. All are expected to play pivotal roles on the outside.
In the backfield, it’s Zion Johnson who is prepared to break out. French IV is a capable runner as well and this gives the team a dual-threat option.
The other question is — can Cincinnati score against big-time opponents?
The Bearcats got off to that quick start to the season thanks to the offense before being slowed down drastically over the final four games. This is where French IV will have to help the offense take that next step.
Defense: Can it survive being on the field so much?
The flipside to the offense moving quickly is that the defense has to be on the field more. Last year, that hit a wall toward the end of the season and it showed. This year, is the defense prepared for the challenge?
Nate Woody comes in as the defensive coordinator to help fix different issues. Two major transfers on that side of the ball include Chidera Otutu and Josh Hough, who are both expected to make an impact along the defensive line. The Bearcats do not feature that premiere pash rusher so it will need to rely on its depth to get in the backfield.
Another way to offset the speed of the offense is for the defense to get off the field. The Bearcats struggled with this at times, especially when forcing turnovers. Cincinnati came away with just two interceptions on 389 pass attempts by opponents. Cincinnati was also last in the Big 12 in first downs allowed.
Matchup Preview
According to multiple sites, Boston College currently sits as a touchdown underdog in the opener on the road against the Bearcats. While there is a chance that it moves either way before kickoff, that feels about right. It is also not an impossible upset for the Eagles to pull off but it will be an uphill battle. There are many changes on both sides of the ball for both teams but the tempo of Cincinnati can be a bother for opposing defenses. The other angle of this is can Boston College take advantage of some of the Bearcat struggles defensively from last season?
This will ultimately be the decider. Can the Eagles get in the win column early with a statement victory in Week 1?
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