'Neers Nipped at Nippert

The Cincinnati Bearcats pulled even with five minutes left before halftime and clawed back in the second half to defeat West Virginia 24-21. By downing the Mountaineers, the Bearcats continued an inconceivable, unbelievable unbeaten 2009 under head coach, Brian Kelly. West Virginia hopes of capturing the Big East title or becoming bowl eligible were dashed in the defeat.
Cincinnati running back, Isaiah Pead carried the football near the goal line in the final minutes of the second quarter. Pead was stripped of the pigskin by West Virginia safety, Robert Sands. Nose tackle, Chris Neild jumped on the loose ball and the Mountaineers seemingly recovered the fumble. The officials overturned the call they originally signaled a fumble and instead ruled it a game-tying Cincinnati touchdown. A 14-14 game stood as both Big East teams headed to the locker room for the half.
Oft-injured quarterback, Tony Pike, completed Cincinnati’s opening possession of the game with a touchdown to give the Bearcats a 7-0 lead. The Bearcats turned around a West Virginia three-and-out to drive 73 yards for the score behind Zach Collaros in his fourth start for Pike. Kelly utilized Pike deep in West Virginia territory and in limited situations because of the senior injured his forearm a month ago. Pike sharply hit Armon Binns from ten yards across the middle of the zone. West Virginia signal caller, Jarrett Brown threw for 188 yards and a touchdown. He bulled in from eight yards past Bearcats lineman, Dan Giordano, to notch the game at 7-7 with 3:19 left in the first quarter. The rapid fire, yellow-and-white clad Mountaineers were not going to give in and lie down. Mountaineer kicker, Ryan Clarke, provided the visitor’s their first lead when he legged a 37 yard field goal in the second. Pead responded with the controversial two yard rush for Cincinnati. The Bearcats mixed it up offensively to start the second half. The strategy awarded the unblemished Bearcats a 21-14 advantage. Pead carried the ball on the first four plays of the drive and Collaros’ three completions put the Bearcats at the six yard line with a chance for seven. Pike was prompted to perform off the sidelines and quickly whipped the ball to D.J. Woods on a pass route. It was the quarterback’s second touchdown pass. He needed only four throws to score twice this game.
The mighty Mountaineers took advantage of Cincinnati mistakes to keep it a close game. They missed key opportunities in the first half, especially on a fourth down play before the intermission. Brown was pressured into throwing the ball incomplete from the Cincinnati 24 yard line, and the Mountaineers came up empty-handed. Collaros was a calamity for Cincy as he struggled with sacks and incompletions in the fourth quarter too. West Virginia tailback, Noel Devine, rushed for 88 yards and was effective in the final minutes. Jock Sanders scrambled for first downs, but Brown remained unable to find the end zone. Cincinnati settled for three during the ensuing drive on Jake Rogers’ 38 yard field goal with 2:08 left in regulation. Brown completed six passes to propel the promising Mountaineers to the 3 yard line. He hit Bradley Starks with 39 seconds left to narrow the outcome by three points. Binns cut across the field to recover West Virginia’s attempted on-side kick. Fifth-ranked Cincinnati was in position to finish it off, sending the Mountaineers home losers for just the third time this year. The swagger of a seasoned Cincinnati squad was enough to sour the dreams of WVU. Binns finished with 62 yards to lead all receivers and Pead scampered for 175 on the ground. The Mountaineers take on Pittsburgh in 2009’s installment of the Backyard Brawl on Black Friday. The 10-0 Bearcats welcome 3-6 Illinois to Nippert Stadium next week before a December 5th cat-fight with the Panthers. It’s all pawprints on deck for cursory Cincinnati.

Parting Points: November 14th song- “Name” by Goo Goo Dolls
Did you know…a bearcat is neither a bear nor a cat and its natural habitat is in trees?
Hawkeyes vs. Buckeyes!