Bearcats roll behind Ridder’s 402 yards, 4 TDs
CINCINNATI — Desmond Ridder had another big game, and Cincinnati’s defense got some revenge.
Ridder threw for 327 yards and three touchdowns and ran for 75 yards and a fourth score to help No. 7 Cincinnati rout East Carolina 55-17 on Friday night.
Cincinnati (7-0, 5-0 American Athletic) extended its schoolrecord home winning streak to 19 games, the fourth-longest streak among FBS schools, and kept its hopes alive for a College Football Playoff berth.
Ridder has accounted for 17 touchdowns in the past four games, including nine rushing.
“Once plays break down and I see a hole, I just go,” Ridder said. “The offensive line has done a great job. The preparation has been good.”
In Cincinnati’s three-point victory at East Carolina last year, the Pirates scored 43 points and piled up 638 yards. The Bearcats were motivated to prevent a repeat.
ECU had just 293 total yards Friday, more than 100 below its season average.
“The defense had an edge, a chip on their shoulder,” said senior cornerback James Wiggins, who had five tackles and his first interception of the season.
The offense got off to a fast start with Ridder’s 33-yard touchdown pass to Michael Young to cap a 79-yard drive on their opening possession.
“Desmond Ridder is a talented quarterback, “East Carolina coach Mike Houston said. “He makes them go. I think he’s an NFL-type quarterback.”
The Bearcats’ offense produced 653 total yards and averaged nearly 10 yards per play.
Cincinnati had second-and-goal at the Pirates 3, but lost a fumble at the 5. Six plays later, however, Bearcats linebacker Jarell White returned an interception 26 yards for a touchdown.
After punting on three of its first four possessions, East Carolina (1-6, 1-5) drove 58 yards in three plays, pulling to within 14-7 on Keaton Mitchell’s 18-yard run.
Ridder’s 16-yard scramble on third-and-12 set up Jerome Ford’s 24-yard touchdown run, and Tre Tucker’s 45-yard touchdown reception highlighted a 28-point second quarter.
After passing for 535 yards against the Bearcats last season, Holton Ahlers threw for 87 yards Friday with three interceptions. He was sacked four times.
“There was definitely a different feel than last year,” Bearcats coach Luke Fickell said.
Hawkeyes maintain mastery of Minnesota
Tyler Goodson rushed for a career-high 142 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries, and Iowa’s defense clamped down hard on Minnesota for a 35-7 victory that gave the Hawkeyes possession of the Floyd of Rosedale trophy for the sixth straight season.
Jack Koerner and Riley Moss each picked off Tanner Morgan for the Gophers quarterback’s
first two-interception game in two years, and Zach VanValkenburg had three of the team’s four sacks.
Iowa’s defense has a streak of 11 straight games with at least one interception.
Minnesota’s Mohamed Ibrahim rushed for 144 yards on 33 attempts, but the junior who entered the evening with the highest rushing average in the FBS didn’t come close to controlling the game like the past twoweeks.
“You’ve got to give it up to ’em.
They came in with a good game plan, and it worked,” said Ibrahim, who rushed for 431 yards and eight scores against Maryland and Illinois.
Pac-12 cancellations lead to new matchup
The Pac-12’s football schedule has been scrambled for a second straight week, with positive COVID-19 tests leading to the cancellation of Saturday’s California at Arizona State and Utah at UCLA games.
Instead, Cal will play UCLA on Sunday morning at the Rose Bowl in a game the two teams will have had less than two full days to prepare for.
The Sun Devils’ home opener was called off because of several positive COVID-19 tests among the team’s players and coaching staff, including head coach Herm Edwards.
The school said the positive tests put the team below 53 available scholarship players, the minimum allowed according to the league’s cancellation policy.
Later Friday, Utah also determined it didn’t have the minimum number of scholarship players available for the UCLA game.