The Cincinnati Bearcats pulled off a gritty 31-26 victory over Kansas State on September 26, fighting back from a halftime deficit for the second straight week. Before the game even kicked off, Bearcats head coach Scott Satterfield told fans exactly where to focus their eyes: the trenches. He knew this game wasn’t about the skill guys as much as it was about the D-line battling the O-line, predicting it would be “incredible to see.” And boy, was he right.
The Trenches Decided Everything
Satterfield’s gut feeling was spot on because when the dust settled, Cincinnati absolutely owned the line of scrimmage. Against a Kansas State team that was only giving up 96 rushing yards per game, the Bearcats bulldozed their way to a whopping 271 yards on the ground, while holding K-State to just 155. It’s an insane turnaround when you consider Kansas State’s offensive line came into the game rated as the top group through three weeks by Pro Football Network with a 98.9, far outranking UC’s No. 16 O-line. UC was No. 8 in FBS rushing offense, with K-State right behind at No. 9, so you knew it was going to be a battle. Satterfield didn’t mince words after the win, saying simply, “We rushed for 271; they had 155. We won in the trenches.” Gi’Bran Payne led the charge with 126 yards, hitting the century mark for the third time this season, and Cole Tabb hammered home another 124 yards, scoring three crucial touchdowns in the second half.
Shutting Down a Deadly Weapon
It wasn’t just the offense grinding it out; the defense came up huge, especially with second-half adjustments. K-State quarterback Avery Johnson had just steamrolled Tulane for 152 rushing yards on September 19, but Bearcats defensive coordinator Nate Woody’s unit held him to a mere 38 yards. Satterfield called Johnson a “deadly weapon running the football,” and knew the key was forcing him to throw. “If we play Avery Johnson, we want him to attempt 50 passes and not run the football effectively,” Satterfield explained. Johnson attempted exactly 50 passes, meaning the strategy worked like a charm. Offensive tackle Joe Cotton summed up the team’s attitude perfectly, admitting they “started off slow; we went to the sideline, we hated what we saw.” But they regrouped, got a “good feel for them,” and then “really got after that.” That kind of mid-game adjustment is how you win.
This monumental win, especially on National Pancake Day no less, proves that Cincinnati’s offensive linemen like Joe Cotton, Evan Tengesdahl, Taran Tyo, Xavier Lozowicki, and Judea Milon are legit. They were already No. 4 in Pro Football Focus pass blocking and No. 8 in run blocking coming in, and these numbers are only going up after they outrushed Kansas State by 116 yards. The Bearcats showed some serious fight and proved they can win in the dirtiest part of the game. That kind of grit is something to build an entire season on.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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