The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

CHRIS Ferguson returned to the field for the Cincinnati Bearcats and the No.21 ranked team in the nation continued their successful run in conference play.

The graduate offensive lineman got the start at left tackle and the Bearcats won 24-13 over Tulsa Saturday at Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio.

It was their third consecutive American Athletic Conference win since conference play began and it was the first AAC game for Ferguson this season.

Ferguson began the season with four starts at both left and right tackle, but has missed the last two games against UCF and Houston with an ankle injury.

With the win, UC moves to 6-1 on the year, making the Bearcats bowl eligible for the 11th time in the last 14 years. With the victory, the Bearcats have now won 11 in-a-row at home with four victories this year, six last year and one in 2017.

The Bearcats are on a bye this week. Their next game comes November 2 when they travel to Greenville, N.C., to face East Carolina University.

The Bearcats have climbed in both NCAA Division I - FBS polls following a win over another conference rival. They are now ranked No.21 in both the Associated Press Top 25 and the Amway Coaches Poll. They moved up four spots in the AP poll and were previously unranked in the Coaches Poll. Ferguson was able to return for his sixth season when he was granted an eligibility-extension waiver by the NCAA because of injuries suffered earlier in his career.

After not seeing the field the previous four seasons, Ferguson won the starting job at right tackle last season and went on to start all 13 games of a season which concluded with the Bearcats' win over Virginia Tech in the Military Bowl.

Ferguson outlined his football journey thus far with Dan Hoard of GoBearcats.com.

"It's just a blessing. I'm humbled by it. My family is happy for me, my mother didn't have to pay for college and that was a blessing in itself," he said. "Over those four years I started to get down on myself but she was always there for me telling me to stay strong and that I've got to run the race, it's a marathon."