Navy football didn’t figure to ever play Cincinnati again after the latter left the American Conference for the Big 12.
It turns out the Midshipmen and Bearcats will meet again.
Navy (9-2) will get another opportunity to take down a Big 12 Conference program when it plays Cincinnati (7-5) in the 67th Autozone Liberty Bowl, being held Jan. 2 at 4:30 p.m. in Memphis. The game will be broadcast on ESPN.
Navy upset Kansas State of the Big 12, 20-17, in the 2019 Liberty Bowl. Last season, Navy knocked off Oklahoma, formerly of the Big 12, 21-20, in the Armed Forces Bowl.
This marks the third time Navy has been chosen to play in the Liberty Bowl, having lost to Ohio State in the 1981 edition. This will be the second Liberty Bowl appearance for Cincinnati, which was still in the American when it beat Vanderbilt, 31-24.
Cincinnati, under the direction of third-year coach Scott Satterfield, finished 5-4 in the Big 12. The Bearcats began conference action with five straight wins, including an upset of then-14th-ranked Iowa State. Cincy closed out the regular season with four straight league losses to finish in a four-way tie for seventh place.
Navy finished in a three-way tie for first place in the American Conference with a head-to-head loss to North Texas keeping it out of the championship game. Tulane beat North Texas, 34-21, to capture the championship and earn a berth in the College Football Playoff.
Cincinnati had a total of 13 players earn All-Big 12 Conference honors with senior linebacker Jake Golday a first-team pick. Redshirt junior quarterback Brendan Sorsby, senior wide receiver Cyrus Allen, redshirt junior offensive lineman Joe Cotton, redshirt sophomore offensive lineman Evan Tengesdahl, redshirt senior defensive lineman Dontay Corleone and redshirt junior punter Max Fletcher were all second team selections.
Corleone, Golday and tight end Joe Royer have all been invited to the Senior Bowl.
Sorsby has passed for 2,800 yards and 27 touchdowns, while Sorsby along with fellow tailbacks Tawee Walker and Evan Pryor have teamed to rush for 1,889 yards and 16 scores. Allen leads Cincy with 49 receptions for 665 yards and 12 touchdowns, while three other receivers have between 416 and 484 yards.
Golday leads the Bearcats with 105 tackles (six for loss) and 3 1/2 sacks. Redshirt senior safety Trevon Gola-Gollard has 71 tackles, while redshirt junior linebacker Jonathan Thompson has 66 and a team-high 7 1/2 tackles for loss.
This will be the seventh meeting between Navy and Cincinnati with the all-time series tied 3-3. The Midshipmen and Bearcats faced off four times as American Conference members with the latter holding a 3-1 edge.
Navy, which was ranked No. 22 in the latest Associated Press poll, just beat Memphis, 28-17, at what is now known as Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium.
Have a news tip? Contact Bill Wagner at [email protected], 443-534-0102 and x.com/@BWagner_CapGaz.
