We caught up with Eric Lilly ahead of TCU’s final game against Cincinnati.
TCU football is nearing a close. The Horned Frogs play their regular season finale against the Cincinnati Bearcats today at 5:00 p.m. CT. It’s been a wild ride for TCU, starting the season 3-3 with a narrow loss to UCF, a blowout against cross-town rival SMU, and a disheartening loss at home to the Houston Cougars. Following the Frogs’ rough start, TCU won four of their next five games, including blowout victories over Oklahoma State and Arizona. For the Horned Frogs’ ultimate game, they’ll take the Bearcats for the fourth time in history and the first in 20 years. Ahead of the matchup, we caught up with Eric Lilly of The Bearcat Bunch. We discussed Cincinnati’s performance this season, what positions to watch out for, and of course, a prediction for potentially the Bearcats’ final game of the season.
Frogs O’ War: What were your expectations for Cincinnati’s second season in the Big 12? Have the Bearcats over or underperformed in year two?
The Bearcat Bunch: 5-7 wins. Get to a bowl or have a lot of excuses with 5 wins. We don’t have enough excuses, though. I’d say slightly underperformed as we are much improved from last season but choked the Pitt game away and also had a disaster-class performance versus West Virginia at home.
Frogs O’ War: Cincinnati is in the midst of a four-game losing streak. What’s changed from the Bearcats’ first seven games to its past four?
The Bearcat Bunch: A lot of it is the schedule. The WVU game is inexcusable, but the other three losses were all road games versus teams who are still in play to go to Arlington (Colorado, Kansas State, and Iowa State).
Frogs O’ War: What’s been the Bearcats’ best positional grouping on offense? Defense? Has it changed throughout the season?
The Bearcat Bunch: Quarterback or Running back on offense. Quarterback has gotten worse during our tough stretch but I still believe in Brendan Sorsby and think he will put up decent numbers versus TCU. Running back Corey Kiner has cemented himself in the Bearcats’ history books but our running offense has been somewhat inconsistent this season for whatever reason. We seem a little predictable on offense. On defense, no group stands out but they’ve put together a decent season and are better than preseason expectations.
Frogs O’ War: What key Cincinnati defensive players should the TCU Horned Frogs offense be on the lookout for? What about the Bearcats’ offense, who should the Horned Frogs be worried about?
The Bearcat Bunch: Defensive tackle Dontay Corleone is the standout on the line, Linebacker Jake Golday has been the standout in that group, and no defensive backs have really stood out this season. Offensively I think TCU’s biggest worry should be keeping Sorsby as uncomfortable as he has been for the past month. He is the key for us and if he gets going, we can beat anyone in this league. Tight end Joe Royer is a guy who could blow up, too.
Frogs O’ War: Is the future looking bright for Cincinnati football? Will a win over the Horned Frogs to earn bowl eligibility be considered a resounding success or just a step in the right direction?
The Bearcat Bunch: The vibes are very much down, but getting to six wins would do wonders for the program to sell a positive trajectory to fans, players, and recruits.
Frogs O’ War: What’s your prediction for Cincinnati vs. TCU? Who wins? What’s the final score?
The Bearcat Bunch: I think TCU wins a close one something like 28-24.
Special thanks to Eric for giving us the inside scoop on Cincinnati football! Be sure to follow Eric and his page on “X,” The Bearcat Bunch for everything Cincinnati, not just football!