09 September, 2017
The Wolverines will meet the Bearcats for the first time but face a familiar foe in Cincinnati coach Luke Fickell, who spent 14 years on the Ohio State coaching staff - including a season as the interim head coach in 2011 after Jim Tressel resigned amidst a tattoo scandal.
The Michigan Wolverines play the Cincinnati Bearcats in one of the college football games on Saturday, start time at 12:00 PM ET, at Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor, Michigan.
The Bearcats started the Luke Fickell era with a remarkably unconvincing win over FCS cellar-dweller Austin Peay, while MI overcame a sloppy performance in their debut, topping Florida despite surrendering two first-half pick-sixes. The Bearcats were a 43-point favorite coming into the game, so they clearly are 0-1 against the spread this season. Hayden Moore completed 17 of 28 passes for 151 yards and three touchdowns. Cincinnati didn't get much offense in the win, as they were held to just 248 total yards.
Cincinnati: Mike Boone took advantage of his debut as a No. 1 RB, running for 100 yards and a TD on 19 carries. Defensively, Cincinnati football yields 14.0 points and 313.0 total yards, 89.0 in passing and 224.0 in rushing per game. MI came away with a 33-17 victory over No. 16 Florida in their season opener on Sunday at Arlington, Texas. The Wolverines were easily able to cover the 4.5-point spread in the victory.
MI didn't skip a beat on defense despite replacing 10 starters as Don Brown's unit registered six sacks and forced three turnovers while holding the Gators to 192 yards of offense. Devin Bush led the team with seven tackles and two sacks.
"It's incredible to be back", Schefter told Brad Galli before the game at Michigan Stadium.
