By John Erardi
The Cincinnati Enquirer

The University of Cincinnati football team's offense was supposed to rewrite the record books this season, but instead is a big reason the Bearcats are 5-6 and on the verge of being knocked out of bowl contention.

Saturday's 20-19 loss at Hawaii was just more of the same for UC. The Bearcats racked up 370 yards of offense but scored only one touchdown.

"We've lost the ability to make timely catches or timely plays," UC coach Rick Minter said. "We've quit scoring on quick strikes. We've always said, 'You've got to be explosive.' But we haven't scored recently from far out. And when our defense or kicking game doesn't achieve the short field, we're always looking uphill."

There also appears to be a tendency for UC to rely too much on its running game, to the point where the opposition knows what's coming.

Minter had predicted before the Hawaii game that UC's offense would make or break the Bearcats' chances of upsetting Hawaii. He was prophetic; the defense again played well, but the passing game sputtered, producing just 231 yards and one touchdown.

"We've underachieved, and been disappointing on offense, quite a bit," Minter said. "I don't know if there's a clear-cut answer as to why."

You could choose from any number of reasons. Quarterback Gino Guidugli isn't as sharp as he was last season. Wide receiver Jon Olinger drops too many passes to be considered a go-to guy. Explosive wide receiver LaDaris Vann has been banged up. The play-calling has been too predictable, especially in the red zone. There has been an over-reliance on the same people to get the job done instead of giving younger players a chance to make a mark.

The Bearcats had what they needed to earn a victory at Hawaii.

"We've got a good quarterback, a good running back, a solid offensive line that gave up no sacks or pressures and turned (the ball) over only once, and our defense made up for that," Minter said.

But questionable calls by officials overturned two critical UC takeaways Saturday and allowed Hawaii to achieve five first downs through penalties. Had the Bearcats won that game, they would need only one more victory to achieve bowl eligibility.

Instead, the Bearcats not only have to win Saturday's home game with Alabama-Birmingham, they must beat East Carolina on the road - something a Minter-coached team has never done - on Dec. 6.

Blaming the loss to Hawaii on the officials would obscure the fact that UC's offense played a role in costing it that game. The Bearcats must revive the offense if they are to earn a bowl berth.