On paper, it has all the makings of one of the nation's finest defenses, with six starters back from a unit that ranked 13th in the country in 1996.
But on Thursday night against Tulsa, UC showed it still needs some work. After a first half in which Tulsa quarterback John Fitzgerald had his way with things, the Bearcats stepped up in the second half to avoid disaster.
UC allowed 365 total yards, 221 of them in the first half of a 34-24 victory over the Golden Hurricane.
"We're a lot better defensive team than we showed tonight," defensive coordinator Rex Ryan said. "We had some mental mistakes. We didn't tackle well, and we're not accustomed to that on our team. We'll get it straightened out by next week."
It was no secret coming in that UC's secondary might be vulnerable to Tulsa's pass-oriented offense. Cornerback Artrell Hawkins was the group's only returning starter.
Fitzgerald spent much of the first half exposing that weakness, completing 11-of-17 passes for 177 yards and one TD. His success could be attributed no more to the coverage than a meager pass rush that produced one sack and gave Fitzgerald plenty of time in the pocket.
Especially painful for UC was Fitzgerald's ability to complete the long pass on third down. On Tulsa's second-quarter touchdown drive that tied the game at 7-7, Fitzgerald hit Wes Caswell down the middle for 20 yards on third-and-5 from his own 43. On the next series, receiver Damon Savage split the secondary for 34 yards on third-and-26.
"We didn't really run our assignments as well as we should," said safety Tinker Keck, a junior college transfer playing his first Division I game.
The defense kicked itself into gear in the third quarter. UC's coaches put less emphasis on pressure, more on coverage. As a result, Fitzgerald completed only 3-of-11 passes in the quarter, while Tulsa ran for 31 yards. Tulsa's only score of the third quarter came on a 54-yard field goal by James Anderson less than five minutes in.
"Our defense will be fine," UC coach Rick Minter said. "It did not play one of its better games tonight, but you have to tip your hat to Tulsa for that. They had all summer to study us."
Today's report
Game story
UC starts season on right foot Paul Daugherty column
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