Cincinnati Bearcats - NCAA Football Odds, Lines & Betting

Heading into their third season under head coach Mark Dantonio, the Cincinnati Bearcats were expected to finish near the bottom of the Big East Conference in 2006. But Cincy was returning 17 starters, including the nucleus of what turned out to be a pretty good defense. The Bearcats lost three of their first four games last year, including road decisions at Ohio State and Virginia Tech. But they reeled off seven wins in nine games, including that memorable 30-11 thrashing of then-No. 7 Rutgers at Nippert Stadium and a 27-24 victory over Western Michigan in the International Bowl. They finished 8-5 overall, 4-3 in the Big East.

The end of last season, however, featured some strange doings; Dantonio left the team to take over the head job at Michigan State, and new coach Brian Kelly guided the team for the last two weeks and the bowl win. Kelly had success at Central Michigan, guiding the Chippewas to a MAC title and their first bowl appearance in 12 seasons last year. This year in the Queen City, Cincy returns 15 starters, including eight from a defense that ranked 31st overall last year and 24th vs. the run. Cincy also ranked 13th in average time-of-possession, although the minus-6 turnover ratio was a bit of a problem. Starting quarterback Justin Grutza completed 61% of his passes in '06, but for just a 9/13 TD/INT ratio. Transfer Ben Mauk, a former starter at Wake Forest, will likely press Grutza for playing time.

The schedule isn't nearly as brutal as last season; the 'Cats visit Pitt and Rutgers, but get Louisville and West Virginia at home. Last year, Cincinnati was one of the reasons the Big East was so deep. And there's no reason to believe the Bearcats can't equal or improve on that eight-win total of 2006 this season.

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