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Get ready for an American Athletic battle as the Cincinnati Bearcats and the Tulane Green Wave will face off at noon ET on Friday at Nippert Stadium. Last year, Cincinnati and Tulane were perfect equals, playing to nothing to nothing and nothing to nothing draws.
You can't lose the contest if you win every quarter, and that was precisely the Bearcats' strategy against the Temple Owls this past Saturday. Cincinnati captured a comfortable 23-3 victory. The team ran away with 17 points in the first half and mostly just sat on those in the second to pick up the win. No one had a standout game offensively for Cincinnati, but they got scores from RB Ryan Montgomery, WR Tre Tucker, and QB Ben Bryant.
Special teams collected 11 points for Cincinnati. K Ryan Coe delivered a perfect 3-for-3 game.
Meanwhile, the Green Wave took their game at home last week with ease, bagging a 59-24 win over the SMU Mustangs. The matchup was pretty much decided by the half, when the score had already reached 28-7. QB Michael Pratt had a dynamite game for Tulane; he passed for three TDs and 141 yards on 14 attempts in addition to rushing for three TDs and 70 yards.
Tulane's defense was a force to be reckoned with, as it collected two interceptions and three fumbles. The picks came courtesy of S Lummie Young IV and DB DJ Douglas.
This next game is expected to be close, with Cincinnati going off at just a 2-point favorite. Those who got lucky with them against the spread this past Saturday might want to hold off on placing bets this time since the squad has yet to string together back-to-back wins against the spread.
The wins brought Cincinnati up to 9-2 and Tulane to 9-2. The Bearcats are 7-1 after wins this year, the Green Wave 6-2.
