Cincinnati Bearcats vs. Miami Ohio Betting Preview, Odds, Predictions

The Cincinnati Bearcats will be hosting the Miami Redhawks for a Saturday afternoon showdown at 3:00 p.m. EST on ESPN+. This will be the 124th meeting between these two teams as Miami leads the series 59-58-7. The Bearcats have won the past 14 meetings against the Redhawks and look to continue this streak on Saturday.

This will be the first full crowd at the Bearcats home field, Nippert Stadium since the pandemic started. There is expected to be a big crowd coming out to the game with anticipation to watch college football live again. Cincinnati comes into this game ranked No. 8 in the preseason AP poll.

Odds

Cincinnati is the favorite to win this game as the spread is -22.5 in favor of the Bearcats. The over/under is set at 50.5. It is projected that the score will be 39-24, which states that Miami is expected to cover for this game and that the over will hit.

Redhawks Look to Change Their Fortune

Miami played only three games in 2020 with a record of 2-1. They will be looking to start off their season with an away win at Nippert Stadium behind their experienced quarterback, Brett Gabbert, who had a very good 2019 season. Jack Sorenson is their star wide receiver and should be someone to watch on Saturday.

The Redhawks' defense looked good in their short 2020 season, where they led all of college football with 4.3 sacks per game. Kameron Butler is their main star on the defensive side, where he recorded 5.5 sacks in 2019 and 2.5 sacks last year in only three games. He will be looking to get to the Cincinnati quarterback early to get him uncomfortable throwing the ball.

No. 8 Cincinnati Fights For Legitimacy

Cincinnati lost the Peach Bowl last year to Georgia on a last-second field goal and will be looking to avenge that loss with a strong start to the season. Desmond Ridder, the reigning AAC Offensive Player of the Year, wants to make a name for himself and his team. He will need to prevent costly turnovers, which hurt the team early on last year.

The defense will be led by their new defensive coordinator, Mike Tressel, who was an assistant at Michigan State last season. The Cincinnati defense is strongest in the cornerback and defensive backs and will be putting pressure on Gabbert early. The Bearcats will need to get some takeaways in this game to take the upset out of the equation.

Prediction

The Cincinnati Bearcats will make it 15 straight against the Miami Redhawks on Saturday. They are too talented on both sides that the Redhawks will not be able to handle them. Miami may keep it close early, but as the game goes on, the Bearcats will tire out this Redhawk team.