Final Oct 29
NMSU 13
FIU 34
Final Oct 29
ULL 23
TXST 17
Final Oct 29
LT 3
SHSU 9
Final Oct 30
JVST 31
LIB 21
Final Oct 30
KENN 14
WKU 31
Final Oct 31
TULN 34
CHAR 3
Final Nov 1
GSU 27 7.0 o48.0
CONN 34 -7.0 u48.0
Final Nov 1
USF 44 -1.5 o48.0
FAU 21 1.5 u48.0
Final Nov 1
SDSU 24 24.0 o55.5
BSU 56 -24.0 u55.5
Final Nov 2
DUKE 31 21.0 o56.0
MIA 53 -21.0 u56.0
Final Nov 2
MISS 63 -8.0 o54.0
ARK 31 8.0 u54.0
Final Nov 2
AFA 3 18.0 o37.5
ARMY 20 -18.0 u37.5
Final Nov 2
ME 14 36.5 o49.0
OKLA 59 -36.5 u49.0
Final OT Nov 2
NW 26 2.5 o44.0
PUR 20 -2.5 u44.0
Final Nov 2
BUFF 41 -1.0 o48.0
AKR 30 1.0 u48.0
Final Nov 2
MEM 36 -7.0 o62.0
UTSA 44 7.0 u62.0
Final Nov 2
TOL 29 -10.0 o54.5
EMU 28 10.0 u54.5
Final Nov 2
OSU 20 -3.0 o47.0
PSU 13 3.0 u47.0
Final Nov 2
MINN 25 -3.0 o47.0
ILL 17 3.0 u47.0
Final Nov 2
STAN 28 9.5 o46.5
NCST 59 -9.5 u46.5
Final OT Nov 2
VT 31 -3.0 o51.5
SYR 38 3.0 u51.5
Final Nov 2
VAN 17 8.5 o48.0
AUB 7 -8.5 u48.0
Final Nov 2
ODU 20 -3.0 o58.0
APP 28 3.0 u58.0
Final Nov 2
TLSA 21 2.5 o57.5
UAB 59 -2.5 u57.5
Final Nov 2
KSU 19 -13.0 o45.5
HOU 24 13.0 u45.5
Final Nov 2
ULM 23 10.5 o48.0
MRSH 28 -10.5 u48.0
Final Nov 2
IU 47 -7.5 o53.5
MSU 10 7.5 u53.5
Final Nov 2
TTU 23 13.5 o56.0
ISU 22 -13.5 u56.0
Final Nov 2
ASU 42 -5.0 o57.5
OKST 21 5.0 u57.5
Final Nov 2
ARIZ 12 6.0 o55.0
UCF 56 -6.0 u55.0
Final Nov 2
MTU 20 1.5 o49.0
UTEP 13 -1.5 u49.0
Final Nov 2
FLA 20 14.5 o52.5
UGA 34 -14.5 u52.5
Final Nov 2
UCLA 27 7.5 o38.5
NEB 20 -7.5 u38.5
Final Nov 2
UNC 35 -2.5 o50.5
FSU 11 2.5 u50.5
Final Nov 2
ORE 38 -14.5 o45.0
MICH 17 14.5 u45.0
Final Nov 2
WYO 49 9.0 o61.0
UNM 45 -9.0 u61.0
Final Nov 2
NAVY 10 -13.0 o49.5
RICE 24 13.0 u49.5
Final Nov 2
CCU 24 -4.0 o51.5
TROY 38 4.0 u51.5
Final Nov 2
MASS 20 19.0 o59.0
MSST 45 -19.0 u59.0
Final Nov 2
HAW 21 12.0 o45.5
FRES 20 -12.0 u45.5
Final Nov 2
GASO 34 6.0 o60.0
USA 30 -6.0 u60.0
Final Nov 2
WIS 10 2.5 o40.5
IOWA 42 -2.5 u40.5
Final Nov 2
LOU 33 10.5 o62.5
CLEM 21 -10.5 u62.5
Final Nov 2
USC 21 -2.5 o55.5
WASH 26 2.5 u55.5
Final Nov 2
UK 18 17.5 o45.5
TENN 28 -17.5 u45.5
Final Nov 2
TAM 20 -3.0 o44.0
SOCAR 44 3.0 u44.0
Final Nov 2
PITT 25 7.0 o56.0
SMU 48 -7.0 u56.0
Final Nov 2
CSU 38 -2.5 o45.5
NEV 21 2.5 u45.5
Final Nov 2
TCU 34 2.5 o64.0
BAY 37 -2.5 u64.0
Cincinnati 1st American Athletic13-1
Alabama 2nd Southeastern13-2

Cincinnati @ Alabama preview

AT&T Stadium

Top-ranked Alabama starts its postseason quest for a second straight national championship when it opposes College Football Playoff barrier-breaker Cincinnati on Dec. 31 in the Cotton Bowl at Arlington, Texas.

The Crimson Tide (12-1) are old hands at the CFP, making their seventh appearance in the eight years that the current title-deciding format has been in place.

In addition to a 52-24 win over Ohio State in the 2020-21 title game, Alabama won it all in 2015-16 and 2017-18 but took championship-game losses in 2016-17 and 2018-19.

In contrast, the No. 4 Bearcats (13-0) are the first non-Power 5 conference program to be selected for the College Football Playoff.

"There's a reason they've been in the playoff seven out of the eight years," Cincinnati coach Luke Fickell said of Alabama. "This is not just a top-five program; this is the top program.

"It's an incredible measuring stick on an incredible stage with an incredible opportunity."

It might seem like a formidable challenge for Cincinnati, but the first step is overcoming the Alabama mystique.

"Our players know who they're playing," Fickell said. "They know what (Alabama) is all about, what that program is all about. Now we have to try to find ways to humanize them and bring ourselves back into doing what we need to do.

"The reality is we're not the best team, probably. But that doesn't really matter, because on the 31st, it's really going to be about who is going to play the best."

The Bearcats will rely on the nation's second-best pass defense (168.3 yards allowed per game) to contain Heisman Trophy-winning Alabama quarterback Bryce Young.

While Young threw for 4,322 yards and 43 touchdowns with just four interceptions, Cincinnati has 18 picks (third in the nation in the regular season) and 37 sacks (tied for 19th).

"They don't make a lot of mistakes," Alabama coach Nick Saban said of the Bearcats. "They have some very talented guys. They have a good secondary. They have some guys up front that can rush and have some quickness, and their linebackers are very good players. All around, this is a very good defensive team."

Young has guided Alabama to the nation's fourth-best scoring average, 42.5 points per game.

"As a sophomore in his first year playing, the way he commands, the patience and poise he plays with, a lot of guys will think he can run and is a good athlete, but really for a young guy, I've never seen somebody who uses his feet to take off but does it to throw the ball down the field," Fickell said.

Cincinnati counters with Desmond Ridder, who passed for 3,190 yards with 30 TDs and eight interceptions and rushed for 361 yards with six scores.

He will face All-America linebacker Will Anderson Jr., who leads the nation with 15 1/2 sacks.

Cincinnati's leading ball-carrier, running back Jerome Ford (1,242 yards and 19 touchdowns this season), transferred from Alabama after the 2019 season.

The Crimson Tide are 5-1 in national semifinals, with the loss coming in the inaugural CFP in 2014-15. That 42-35 setback came against Ohio State, which had Fickell as its co-defensive coordinator.

The Cincinnati-Alabama winner will play the Orange Bowl winner, No. 2 Michigan or No. 3 Georgia, for the national title on Jan. 10 in Indianapolis.

--Field Level Media

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