Another night game for Cincinnati, another loss. The 5-4 Bearcats were on the road in Ames to take on Iowa State at 7-2. The primetime game followed two hard losses, both of which a valiant effort was put up.
The first drive of the game was all Cincinnati. At the 12 yard line, Sorsby ran right, and pitched the ball to Evan Pryor for the first score of the game. Sorsby executed this perfectly, getting to the line of scrimmage, not getting the ball out too early, and faking out the defense before Pryor took it to the house. A textbook 10-play 75-yard drive, firing on all cylinders, a great start to the game.
Iowa State responded with a quick drive down the field to tie things up. The rest of the first half was filled with punts, with each team scoring a field goal, leaving the game tied going into the half.
All knotted at 10 to start the third quarter, Iowa State kicked it into gear, with quarterback Rocco Becht slinging the ball effortlessly to his receivers, with a pass to his wide-open tight end for a touchdown.
Down by one score, Cincinnati’s first drive of the half featured a lot of running. Kiner gliding right through the Cyclones, and taking another pitch from Sorsby on an option play for a first down.
As always, Sorsby did a decent amount of running the ball himself and always surprises me how slippery he is to defenders. Although on this drive, running up the middle of the field, and spin moving twice, the ball was punched out of his grasp, and Iowa State recovered it. To make matters worse, the Bearcats added to their growing list of penalties with a facemask, giving the Cyclones 15 yards. The Bearcats held them at the 34 yard line, but Cyclones kicker Kyle Konrardy hit a field goal from 52 yards out.
Cincinnati only ran four plays on their next drive before punting. Just a few plays later on an Iowa State possession, Josh Minkins managed to recover a fumble to give the ball back to the Bearcats with more than enough time on the clock to get back in the game. Kiner took the ball all the way to the red zone, but an offensive holding pushed them back once again. That didn’t stop Sorsby from running 41 yards to the house to cut the deficit to three.
But the Cyclones just became more slippery, breaking tackles left and right. With just a few minutes left in the fourth quarter, Becht broke through the line and ran into the endzone with no effort to put the score at 27-17 with time running out.
Penalties and incomplete passes plagued UC on their frantic race against the clock, and they punted once again. Mason Fletcher showed fake punt, then abandoned that plan and booted the ball down the field. Iowa State put the game away by eating up most of the remaining clock, and scoring a touchdown. Iowa State moves to 8-3 with a 34-17 win, putting the Bearcats at 5-5.
Another missed opportunity to make a bowl game, especially when visiting ranked a opponent like No. 16 Kansas State this Saturday.
The Bearcats mistakes are adding up. Turnovers, fumbles, and penalties did them in for this game. A season high 13 penalties against UC, in times when they really needed a productive drive, hindered their scoring abilities severely. Sorsby is once again leading the team in rushing yards, 141 yards on 14 carries, and a rushing touchdown. Cincinnati needs other players to contribute these explosive plays, and learn how to operate effectively near the end of the game.
With just two games left, and harsh opponents ahead, hopefully UC can pull it together and get their sixth win to be bowl game eligible.
Charlie Jaeb heads up Bearcat Football coverage for Cincinnati Magazine. You can follow him on Twitter @CharlieJaeb.
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