2012 Cincinnati Bearcats football team

The 2012 Cincinnati Bearcats football team represented the University of Cincinnati as a member of the Big East Conference during the 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Bearcats, led by third-year head coach Butch Jones, played their home games at Nippert Stadium. They finished the season 10–3 overall and 5–2 in Big East play to place in a four-way tie for the conference championship. Along with Rutgers, Louisville, and Syracuse, the Bearcats were the final football champions of the Big East Conference, as the league's original incarnation folded following the loss of the three former programs and others to different conferences. Cincinnati became a charter member of the American Athletic Conference the following season.

2012 Cincinnati Bearcats football
Big East co-champion Lambert-Meadowlands Trophy Belk Bowl champion
Belk Bowl, W 48–34 vs. Duke
Conference	Big East Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 22
Record	10–3 (5–2 Big East)
Head coach	Butch Jones (3rd season; regular season) Steve Stripling (interim, bowl game)
Offensive coordinator	Mike Bajakian (3rd season)
Defensive coordinator	John Jancek (3rd season)
Home stadium	Nippert Stadium

2012 Big East Conference football standings

	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 13 Louisville $+		5	–	2					11	–	2
Cincinnati +		5	–	2					10	–	3
Rutgers +		5	–	2					9	–	4
Syracuse +		5	–	2					8	–	5
Pittsburgh		3	–	4					6	–	7
Connecticut		2	–	5					5	–	7
Temple		2	–	5					4	–	7
South Florida		1	–	6					3	–	9
$ – BCS representative as conference champion + – Conference co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

The 2012 Cincinnati team was invited to the Belk Bowl where they defeated Duke. At the end of the regular season, Jones resigned to take the same head coaching position at Tennessee. Defensive line coach Steve Stripling was named the interim head coach for the Belk Bowl.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 6	8:00 pm	Pittsburgh		Nippert Stadium Cincinnati, OH (River City Rivalry)	ESPN	W 34–10	33,562
September 15	7:00 pm	Delaware State*		Nippert Stadium Cincinnati, OH	ESPN3	W 23–7	27,112
September 29	3:30 pm	vs. Virginia Tech*		FedExField Landover, MD	ESPNU	W 27–24	46,026
October 6	7:00 pm	Miami (OH)*		Nippert Stadium Cincinnati, OH (Victory Bell)	FS Ohio	W 52–14	35,097
October 13	7:00 pm	Fordham*	No. 21	Nippert Stadium Cincinnati, OH	ESPN3	W 49–17	26,317
October 20	7:00 pm	at Toledo*	No. 21	Glass Bowl Toledo, OH	ESPN3	L 23−29	24,124
October 26	8:00 pm	at No. 16 Louisville		Papa John's Cardinal Stadium Louisville, KY (Keg of Nails)	ESPN	L 31–34 OT	53,271
November 3	12:00 pm	Syracuse		Nippert Stadium Cincinnati, OH	Big East Network	W 35–24	26,180
November 10	12:00 pm	at Temple		Lincoln Financial Field Philadelphia, PA	Big East Network	W 34–10	20,192
November 17	12:00 pm	No. 22 Rutgers		Nippert Stadium Cincinnati, OH	Big East Network	L 3–10	34,526
November 23	7:00 pm	South Florida		Nippert Stadium Cincinnati, OH	ESPN	W 27–10	21,171
December 1	3:30 pm	at Connecticut		Rentschler Field East Hartford, CT	ABC	W 34–17	33,112
December 27	6:30 pm	vs. Duke*		Bank of America Stadium Charlotte, NC (Belk Bowl)	ESPN	W 48–34	48,128
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

Game summaries

Pittsburgh

	1	2	3	4	Total
Panthers	0	0	3	7	10
Bearcats	14	3	7	10	34

See also: 2012 Pittsburgh Panthers football team

Delaware State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Hornets	0	0	0	7	7
Bearcats	13	7	0	3	23

See also: 2012 Delaware State Hornets football team

Virginia Tech

	1	2	3	4	Total
Hokies	0	7	0	17	24
Bearcats	3	3	7	14	27

See also: 2012 Virginia Tech Hokies football team

Miami (OH)

	1	2	3	4	Total
RedHawks	6	8	0	0	14
Bearcats	14	10	21	7	52

See also: 2012 Miami RedHawks football team

Fordham

	1	2	3	4	Total
Rams	3	3	8	3	17
Bearcats	14	0	21	14	49

See also: 2012 Fordham Rams football team

@ Toledo

	1	2	3	4	Total
#18 Bearcats	0	13	7	3	23
Rockets	10	6	10	3	29

See also: 2012 Toledo Rockets football team

@ Louisville

	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
Bearcats	10	7	7	7	0	31
#14 Cardinals	7	7	3	14	3	34

See also: 2012 Louisville Cardinals football team

Syracuse

	1	2	3	4	Total
Orange	10	7	7	0	24
Bearcats	7	7	14	7	35

See also: 2012 Syracuse Orange football team

@ Temple

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bearcats	14	10	7	3	34
Owls	3	0	7	0	10

See also: 2012 Temple Owls football team

Rutgers

	1	2	3	4	Total
Scarlet Knights	0	7	0	3	10
Bearcats	0	0	0	3	3

See also: 2012 Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team

South Florida

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bulls	0	0	3	7	10
Bearcats	7	6	7	7	27

See also: 2012 South Florida Bulls football team

@ Connecticut

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bearcats	7	7	7	13	34
Huskies	0	10	7	0	17

See also: 2012 Connecticut Huskies football team

Duke–Belk Bowl

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bearcats	3	14	10	21	48
Blue Devils	16	0	8	10	34

See also: 2012 Duke Blue Devils football team and 2012 Belk Bowl

The Bearcats made their first ever appearance in the Belk Bowl and their first ever meeting with Duke. The Blue Devils raced out to an early 16–0 lead in the first quarter after a punt was blocked and recovered for a touchdown. The Bearcats then scored 27 unanswered points capped off by a 46-yard touchdown run by George Winn. The Blue Devils then scored back to back touchdowns to take a 31–27 lead. The Bearcats retook the lead with a 25-yard touchdown pass from Brendan Kay to Chris Moore. The Blue Devils then tied the game with a 52-yard field goal and the game seemed headed to overtime. With under a minute to play TE Travis Kelce took a short pass from Kay and broke several would be tackles in racing 83 yards for the winning score. Insult was added to injury when Nick Temple stripped the ball from Duke QB Sean Renfree and dashed 55 yards with the stolen loaf for a score as time expired. The 48 points is the most points scored by the Bearcats in a bowl game, and would be their largest margin of victory in a bowl game since 1997. This also gave the Bearcats their first consecutive bowl wins since 1946–47. The win gave the Bearcats their 4th 10-win season in the past five years.

Roster

2012 Cincinnati Bearcats
Running backs 1 Ralph David Abernathy IV – Sophomore 22 Jameel Poteat – Freshman 23 Tion Green – Freshman 25 Rob Rice – Freshman 31 Deionte Buckley – Freshman 32 George Winn – Senior 38 Adam Fearing – Senior 49 Anthony King – Junior Wide receivers 2 Dyjuan Lewis – Sophomore 3 Braxton Lane – Freshman 6 Anthony McClung – Junior 7 Kenbrell Thompkins – Senior 15 Chris Moore – Sophomore 16 Damon Julian – Senior 19 Shaq Washington – Freshman 20 Leviticus Payne – Freshman 24 Chris Burrell – Sophomore 80 Alex Chisum – Sophomore 82 Max Morrison – Freshman 83 Danny Milligan – Senior 84 Nate Cole – Freshman 85 Bruce Horner – Senior 87 Jacob Giltrow – Freshman 87 Jeremy Graves – Freshman 88 Shakim Alonzo – Freshman Offensive linemen 59 Deyshawn Bond – Freshman 60 Sam Longo – Junior 62 Cory Keebler – Sophomore 63 Dan Sprague – Junior 66 Sean McClellan – Junior 68 Daniel Murray – Freshman 69 Dominic Mainello – Sophomore 71 Eric Lefeld – Sophomore 73 Ryan Leahy – Freshman 74 Justin Murray – Freshman 75 Kevin Schloemer – Sophomore 76 Austen Bujnoch – Junior 77 Sean Hooey – Senior 78 Parker Ehinger – Freshman 79 Andre Cureton – Junior		Quarterbacks 4 Munchie Legaux – Junior 9 Patick Coyne – Freshman 10 Bennie Coney – Freshman 11 Brendon Kay – Senior 12 Trenton Norvell – Freshman Tight ends 18 Travis Kelce – Senior 35 Josh Russ – Sophomore 46 Jared Golden – Freshman 48 Matt Staubachh – Freshman 81 DJ Dowdy – Freshman 86 Blake Annen – Junior 86 Demetrius Richardson – Senior Defensive linemen 46 Mitch Meador – Junior 50 Alex Pace – Freshman 52 Elijah Shuler – Junior 54 Walter Stewart – Junior 55 Roney Lozano – Sophomore 57 Carroll Phillips – Freshman 58 Brandon Mills – Senior 65 Connor Donnini – Freshman 67 John Williams – Senior 70 Brandon Mitchell – Freshman 90 Camaron Beard – Sophomore 91 Adam Dempsey – Sophomore 92 Silverberry Mouhon – Freshman 93 Brad Harrah – Sophomore 94 Jordan Stepp – Junior 95 Jonathan Burt – Freshman 96 Josh Posley – Freshman 97 Chad Hannah – Freshman 98 Chad West – Freshman 99 Dan Giordano – Senior Defensive backs 2 Trenier Orr – Freshman 8 Adrian Witty – Sophomore 9 Dominique Battle – Senior 11 Deven Drane – Junior 13 Pat Lambert – Senior 17 Malcolm Murray – Senior 20 Chris Williams – Senior 21 Camerron Cheatham – Senior 25 Arryn Chenault – Junior 26 Drew Frey – Senior 27 Drake Bruns – Freshman 29 Andre Jones – Freshman 30 Aaron Roberson – Senior 35 Dylan Coombs – Freshman 36 Marcus Foster – Freshman 39 Demitri Beal – Sophomore 40 Kevin Brown – Freshman 48 Breon Mapp – Junior		Linebackers 4 Maalik Bomar – Senior 10 Jordan Luallen – Junior 33 Solomon Tentman – Sophomore 37 Joey Jones – Freshman 38 Mason Antoun – Freshman 41 Kevin Hyland – Freshman 42 Corey Griffin – Freshman 43 Nick Temple – Sophomore 44 Corey Mason – Sophomore 45 Ey'Shawn McClain – Freshman 46 Devin Bruns – Freshman 47 Colin Lozier – Senior 48 Jeff Luc – Junior 50 Innocent Macha – Sophomore 51 Greg Blair – Senior 53 Franklin Bruscianelli – Freshman 57 Clemente Casseus – Freshman Special teams 14 Tony Miliano – Sophomore (K) 61 Kirk Willis – Freshman (LS) 24 John Lloyd – Sophomore (P) 34 Pat O'Donnell – Junior (P) 35 Eric Ernst – Freshman (P) Head coach Butch Jones Assistant coaches Steve Stripling – Asst HC/co-defensive Coord/DL Mike Bajakian – Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Mark Elder – Special teams coordinator/safeties John Jancek – Defensive coordinator/linebackers Don Mahoney – Offensive line Coach Shannon Morrison – Cornerbacks coach T. J. Weist – Wide receivers Coach/recruiting coordinator Dave Johnson – Tight ends coach Dave Lawson – Asst. AD/Sports Performance Roy Manning – Running backs coach Mike Szerszen – Director of Football Strength and Conditioning

Depth chart

Defense
FS Arryn Chenault Dominique Battle ⋅		WLB MLB SLB ⋅ Greg Blair ⋅ Solomon Tentman Clemente Casseus ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ⋅					SS Drew Frey Malcolm Murray ⋅
CB Camerron Cheatham Leviticus Payne ⋅		DE DT DT DE Brandon Mills Camaron Beard Jordan Stepp Dan Giordano Josh Posley Adam Dempsey John Williams Silverberry Mouhon Elijah Shuler ⋅ Mitch Meador ⋅						CB Deven Drane Trenier Orr ⋅
Offense
WR Kenbrell Thompkins Chris Moore Jeremy Graves	WR Damon Julian Alex Chisum Nate Cole	LT LG C RG RT Eric Lefeld Austen Bujnoch Dan Sprague Sam Longo Parker Ehinger Cory Keebler Andre Cureton Dominic Mainello Parker Ehinger Sean Hooey ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ⋅					WR ⋅ ⋅ ⋅	WR Anthony McClung Danny Milligan Shaq Washington
				QB Brendon Kay Munchie Legaux Patrick Coyne
					RB George Winn Ralph David Abernathy IV Jameel Poteat		Special teams PK Tony Miliano P Pat O’Donnell P John Lloyd KR Ralph David Abernathy IV/Anthony McClung PR Danny Milligan LS Kirk Willis H Pat O’Donnell

Awards and milestones

Big East Conference honors

Big East Conference All-Conference First Team

• George Winn, RB
• Travis Kelce, TE
• Eric Lefeld, OL

Big East Conference All-Conference Second Team

• Austen Bujnoch, OL

• Dan Giordano, DL
• Greg Blair, LB
• Pat O'Donnell, P

Big East Conference All-Conference Third Team

• Ralph David Abernathy IV, KR

• Walter Stewart, DL
• Maalik Bomar, LB
• Drew Frey, DB
• Anthony McClung, PR

Rankings

See also: 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Final
AP	RV	RV	—	RV	RV	RV	21	21	RV	RV	—	—	RV	RV	RV	RV
Coaches	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	23	20	18	RV	RV	—	RV	RV	RV	RV	22
Harris	Not released						20	18	RV	RV	—	RV	RV	RV	RV	Not released
BCS	Not released							21	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Not released

Players in the 2013 NFL draft

See also: 2013 NFL Draft

Player	Position	Round	Pick	NFL club
Travis Kelce	TE	3	63	Kansas City Chiefs