The 2008 Cincinnati Bearcats football team represented the University of Cincinnati in the 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team, coached by Brian Kelly, played its homes game in Nippert Stadium. Kelly was in his second full season with the Bearcats after coaching them to a 31–21 win against Southern Miss in the 2007 PapaJohns.com Bowl. On Friday, November 28, 2008, the Bearcats clinched a share of the Big East Conference title for the first time since joining the Big East in 2005. With a victory over Syracuse on November 29, 2008 the Bearcats became the outright football champions of the Big East and set a record with an average attendance of 31,964. After a disappointing loss to Virginia Tech in the 2009 Orange Bowl, the Bearcats finished 17th in the AP Poll for the second consecutive year.
Schedule
Rankings
Game summaries Eastern Kentucky
Oklahoma
Miami
Akron
Marshall
Rutgers
Connecticut
South Florida
West Virginia
Louisville
Pittsburgh
Syracuse
Hawaii
Virginia Tech
Awards and milestones
All-Americans Kevin Huber, P
Post-season finalists and winners Ray Guy Award: Punter of the Year - Kevin Huber (finalist)
Big East Conference honors Special Teams Player of the Year: Mardy Gilyard Coach of the Year: Brian Kelly
Offensive player of the week Week 1: Dustin Grutza
Defensive player of the week Week 10: Aaron Webster
Special teams player of the week Week 2: Mardy Gilyard Week 6: Connor Barwin Week 7: Kevin Huber Week 10: Mardy Gillard Week 13: Jacob Rogers
Big East Conference All-Conference First Team
Mardy Gilyard, WR Mardy Gilyard, KR
Connor Barwin, DL Mike Mickens, DB Brandon Underwood, DB Kevin Huber, P
Big East Conference All-Conference Second Team
Dominick Goodman, WR Trevor Canfield, OL Tony Pike, QB
Terrill Byrd, DL
Players in the 2009 NFL draft
Connor Barwin DE 2 46 Houston Texans Kevin Huber P 5 142 Cincinnati Bengals DeAngelo Smith CB 5 143 Dallas Cowboys Brandon Underwood S 6 187 Green Bay Packers Mike Mickens CB 7 227 Dallas Cowboys Trevor Canfield G 7 254 Arizona Cardinals
References