CINCINNATI \u2013 The game itself was secondary Saturday at Nippert Stadium. The result was pretty much a foregone conclusion. <\/p>\n
Before an energized and electric crowd of 37,978, the eighth-ranked Bearcats came out and showed why they are considered a legit playoff contender and Desmond Ridder showed why he plans on putting his name in the hat for serious Heisman consideration when all is said and done in December. <\/p>\n
Ridder was 20-of-25 for 295 yards, four passing touchdowns while running for another to lead Cincinnati to a 49-14 win over their most historic rival Miami in the 125th battle for the Victory Bell. Ridder did throw one interception in the third quarter that required an acrobatic catch near the sideline to ruin what would\u2019ve been an otherwise pristine day of throwing. For the first time since 1953, the series is tied, 59-59-7. Miami has not trailed in the series since 1916.<\/p>\n
It was 21-0 with 2:45 left in the opening quarter, as Ridder could do no wrong. The fifth-year senior completed 9-of-10 to open the game for 183 yards and three touchdowns in the first 12:15 of the game. <\/p>\n
“Part of what we said on offense is be ‘Code RED’, and that’s relentless, explosive and disciplined,” Ridder explained. “And obviously, as you saw, I felt we put that on display today. That’s what we like to see from our Code Red offense, week in and week out.” <\/p>\n
\nGet ready to hear a lot of Code RED from @ridder_desmond9 and the @GoBearcatsFB<\/a> offense this season. Relentless Explosive and Disciplined pic.twitter.com\/6tk1AgoLGD<\/a><\/p>\n
— Mike Petraglia (@Trags) September 4, 2021<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n